


The Stray

by kawaiikanai



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Angst, Bondage, Emotional Baggage, Emotional Manipulation, Fluff, Illnesses, M/M, Sex Toys, Smut, neko
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-06
Updated: 2015-04-06
Packaged: 2018-03-21 14:31:00
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 12
Words: 27,802
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3695843
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kawaiikanai/pseuds/kawaiikanai
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dan comes across an abandoned cat in an alleyway and takes it back home in hopes of companionship. When he wakes up the next day to a man with cat-like ears and tail, his world is turned upside down. Though their relationship is more than both of them bargained for, they soon find they need each other more than anything else.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This fic may seem a little shaky with its chapter flow because it was mostly prompt based until I decide to end it.

I hang up on Cody; wanting to chuck my phone into a nearby trash can as I make my way through the city, heading home. I’d already told him earlier today I was going to be home late. If he ever paid attention to my texts, he’d know that. I let out a breath, watching it rise into the chilly spring air. I know he didn’t mean to yell at me for making him wait; he’s just been stressed lately. I quicken my pace, rounding a corner and heading towards an alleyway.

As I pass the mouth of the alley I hear a strange noise; a low growling sound. I stop, peering down the way to spot a burly dog, back hunched and teeth bared at a black cat it’s managed to corner. The poor thing scratches at the wall behind it, trying to climb away. I stomp down the alley, shouting at the dog to go away. It hears me, turning to bark at me but I think my sheer height intimidates it, it taking one look up at me and running off.

I turn back to the cat and think its run off too before I see its tail poking out from under a discarded newspaper. I kneel down, clicking my tongue to call it, “It’s ok, little kitty. I won’t bite like that mean old dog.”

The cat slowly pokes its head out from under the paper, crystal blue eyes staring up at me. I hold out my hand, its nose twitching at it, wondering if it can trust me. After a few sniffs, it rubs against my fingers, tickling and making me giggle. Reaching to pick it up, I notice it has a collar, matted leather with a key ring, but no tags. Its fur is soft and thick, an extra bit of tuff on its chest. I cradle it in the crook of my arm, it shivering from the cold, and rubbing its tummy, seeing that it’s a boy. “Do you want to come home with me?”

He meows, head leaning back, like he understands me. I smile, standing back up and heading home.

 

I get in my apartment building and see Cody leaning against my door, smoking and looking irritated. “Is that what took you so long?” he asks, pointing to the bundle in my arms with his cigarette.

“He was getting bullied by a dog. I think he’s lost but there’s no tags.” I explain, fumbling in my pocket for my keys. I let Cody in the door and close it behind me, gingerly setting the cat down on the floor. He hesitates, sniffing the air of the apartment before walking around. I watch as he explores, his curiosity leading him on top of bookshelves and tables.

I turn to Cody, now lounging on the sofa with his feet on my coffee table. “Just let me get situated and I’ll start making diner.”

“I can’t stay too long; I promised I’d go to the bar with Mark soon.”

I stare down at him, not believing what I just heard. “It’s our date night tonight.” I cross my arms in protest. This is the first date night we’ve had in a month, really. We seem to be having them less and less.

“I thought you’d be home at your regular time, so I already had plans for later. Not my fault I didn’t know.” He stands up, finally putting out his cigarette in the ashtray I left out just for him.

I turn away from him, still frustrated about him ignoring me. The point is that he should have known I’d be late if he’d just paid attention to me. Why was he even making other plans on our date night anyway?

He wraps his arms around my waist, squeezing me. “Look, I’m sorry, babe. Let me make it up to you.” His hand goes to my pants, cupping me roughly.

“Cody, I have to get dinner started.” I plead, trying to brush his hand away but he spins me around, pulling me into an open mouth kiss, sloppy and tasting of tar. I hate how he smokes, but he said I shouldn’t try to change him so much.

He quickly sticks his hand down my pants, gripping me properly now and making me get hard even though I’m really not in the mood. He tells me to take my pants off as he unbuckles his own, pulling out his already fully erect cock and rubbing it a bit. Sighing, knowing there’s no point in arguing when he’s horny, I start to lie down on the sofa but Cody flips me over, sticking my ass up into the air and squishing my face into the cushion.

He starts to position himself behind me, holding my hip, but I grab his wrist. “Cody, what about lube or something?” I remind him.

“You’ll be fine, babe. Besides, I don’t have time to stretch you.” He starts to push in dry as I reach for a pillow in front of me. I press my face into it, biting the fabric with clenched teeth. He can be so self-centered sometimes; only thoughts on sex and booze. I hate it. Sometimes I wonder if he even still cares about me anymore, or if he just puts in enough effort to keep me around for times like this.

No, I’m stupid. He could find other guys to have sex with if he wanted to; so he must still have some feelings for me, right?

He starts going faster and I feel the burning, letting a cry escape the pillow as I stain it with tears. I see the cat turn its head towards me from the corner, seeming to be drawn towards my voice. It comes over, probably curious as to what the hell we were doing. A pillow flies towards it and it runs off, claws skidding down the hallway.

“Fucking cat.” Cody grunts.

“Leave i-it alone.” I manage to say; really not understanding why it bothered him so much. It’s just a cat. 

“Shut up.” His hand goes to the back of my head, pressing it back into the pillow and making it hard for me to breathe. It doesn’t take long for him to finish, cumming inside me and pulling out. I stay motionless for a while, letting the burning pain subside as I hear Cody open and close my front door.

I carefully sit up, wincing before looking down at my neglected erection. I try for a minute to give myself some release, lazily flicking my wrist, but with the pain I’m in and the soured mood it’s no use. I let myself calm down and go limp before putting my pants back on, standing up and trying to stretch my now stiff back.

“Kitty?” I call down the hallway and I immediately hear the pitter patter of paws. The cat sees me, meowing and coming right up to me. I pick him up, scratching under his chin. “Sorry for Cody being mean to you. Let’s get you something to eat, alright?”

He purrs as I bring him to my kitchen, setting him on the counter as I search the cabinets for a can of tuna I know I have. I find it and crack it open, dumping the contents into a bowl and setting it in front of him. He laps it up, little drops of juice clinging to his whiskers which makes me laugh.

This cat is adorable. I’m glad I found him; I need better company around the house. Cody never stuck around for long; so even if it’s a one-sided conversation at least a cat is someone to talk to. I lean down, resting my chin on my hands that are placed on the counter, watching the cat lick up every last bit of the tuna. He purrs loudly, stepping over the bowl to nuzzle my head in thanks, whiskers tickling.

“I wish my boyfriend was as grateful as you.” I admit, standing back up. I glance over at the fridge but have long since lost my appetite for dinner; so I decide to go ahead and try to give the cat a bath. He smells faintly of the garbage he was hiding in and tuna, so I don’t want him running around the house too much and stinking up the place.

I coax him to the bathroom, shutting the door behind him so he can’t escape. I start running warm water into the tub, only filling it up by a few centimeters. The cat comes up next to me, propping its front paws on the lip of the tub to check out what I’m doing. Before I can stop him, he jumps right in, making a small splash. I expect him to freak out and I flinch away, not wanting to get clawed. He looks down at his wet paws, seeming to ponder them, then just sits down.

I’ve never seen a cat that didn’t hate water before. “You’re one weird cat.” I say and it seems to tilt its head at me. I take off its collar, setting it aside and grabbing a washcloth. I start washing him up, using just a drop of my Strawberry Kiss so he can smell better. He doesn’t seem to mind the water at all; I can even feel his chest rumbling in content under my hands.

Once he’s nice and clean I dry him off with a towel, swaddling him in it like a baby and carrying him to my room. I set him back on the floor and he jumps out of the towel and onto my bed, kneading at the duvet. I sigh, not really caring right now to get on him about making the covers wet, and fasten his collar back around his neck.

After stripping down to my underwear I carefully climb under the covers, trying not to move too fast. Once I’m settled the cat comes up to my pillow, twirling around in a circle a few times before lying down just under it. I reach out, petting the furry lump of a cat and smiling. I think this cat has spent more time with me than Cody has recently. He seems to have taken to me and the apartment fairly quickly. “I’ll have to think of a good name for you tomorrow. I’m too tired to now.” I let my eyelids droop; sleep taking me away.

 

I wake up to arms around my waist, instinctively squeezing the body next to me and wondering what made Cody be so cuddly. He’s never held me like this before. I yawn and smell a sweet scent, which is odd ‘cause he usually just smells of smoke and beer. I open my groggy eyes, rubbing them and looking down to be met with a mop of black hair, a stark contrast to Cody’s blonde.

My eyes go wide as I realize the person holding me isn’t Cody and I freak out, trying to push him off me, wondering how the hell this stranger got in my house. I struggle, pushing with my legs as well but he holds tight. After a moment I freeze, noticing his hair move oddly. No, it’s not his hair; but two big cat like ears sticking out of the top of his head.

The man stretches his legs; long and tangling with mine. His ears twitch as he nuzzles his head into my chest, sighing. “Who the hell are you?” I exclaim, trying again to push him off me, but my arms shake, still worn out from yesterday and stiff from just waking up. Yesterday’s frustrations flood back into my mind but I push them aside for now.

I feel his head shift and he looks up at me, making my chest tighten, air leaving my lungs. This man is gorgeous; eyes blue wells set against pale skin. He smiles, tongue poking out between his teeth, “Good morning, babe.”

“I- ‘babe’?” He lets go of me finally and sits up as I scoot away from him, looking him over. Broad shoulders, rolled back to boast his hairy chest; his lower half is covered by my sheet, which is good because I think he’s naked. Around his neck sits a collar, not unlike one I’ve seen recently. Who is this strange man? Is he even a man with those ears?

“Isn’t that what that mean man called you? Babe?” he asks, head leaning to the side.

“Yes, but that’s not my name.” Why am I even talking to him? I should be running and calling the police because there’s a strange naked man in my bed. “And you still haven’t told me who you are!”

He points to himself, leaning closer to me. “I’m Phil!” he states proudly, “At least, that’s what my last owner called me, but you said you’d give me a new name last night!” He bounces up and down, clearly excited. I didn’t say anything to this man! What’s he on about ‘new name’; I don’t even-

Then it clicks. The blue eyes, black hair and… well, black furry ears. Even the same collar. It couldn’t be, could it? “You’re the cat I took in yesterday?” I ask, knowing I sound crazy.

“Yes! You saved me from the bad dog!” he basically falls onto my lap, wrapping his arms tightly around my waist and rubbing his fluffy ears against my stomach, “Thank you so much!”

I look down at him in awe as he constricts around my torso. I brought him in yesterday thinking he’d just be a companion; now he’s holding me and thanking me for a simple good deed. No one has ever shown this much gratitude towards me and I feel my eyes welling up despite this odd situation.

“How did this happen?” I ask, trying to keep my voice calm. “How are you a person now?”

“I don’t know.” He shrugs, “I was thinking all night how I wished I could tell you how thankful I was for you saving me and taking care of me but I didn’t know how. Then I woke up like this.”

I see the sheets moving and I reach over him, pulling them away. A long, black tail lifts up, waving back and forth and I see that he is indeed naked. I blush, throwing the sheet back over him. “Look, I-“

“What was that?” he leans up on his hands, staring down at my lap. “Something moved!”

My face flushes even more, and he giggles, watching the sheets over my lap twitch. I quickly jumble up the covers on top of me, hiding myself. It’s not my fault; I woke up to a handsome, naked guy in my bed, what other reaction am I supposed to have?

He backs away from me and crouches, butt wiggling back and forth. I put up a hand, “Oh, no! You better not-“

He pounces on me, pushing me down onto the bed and ripping the sheets away from me. He pulls at my underwear, slipping them down to my thighs, revealing my twitching erection and making my face burn.

His eyes travel down my body, stopping at my crotch. “You should have just said so.”

“Said w-what?” I try covering myself with my hands.

“That you wanted to mate with me.”

“I don’t!” I go to flip over, trying to get up but he grabs my legs, spreading them and coming down to nudge my cock with his nose. My hand flies to his head, ears fuzzy against my fingers, pushing him away from me. What does he think he’s doing?! I feel his breath on me and I freeze, the sensation new. Cody’s never gone down on me before, preferring I just do that to him.

The thought of Cody snaps me back to life, pushing against Phil’s head again. “Stop! I’m with Cody!”

He stops, head coming up to look at me. “You mean the bad man?” he says, actually looking serious now.

“He… He’s not bad.” He just doesn’t think his actions through some times.

“He hurt you.” Phil’s ears draw back and his tail stops waving, dropping down.

I look away, biting my lip. It’s true he hurt me yesterday. I still feel the rawness inside me and I shift uncomfortably. Suddenly, Phil lifts me up, flipping me over onto my stomach. I panic, the memory of yesterday coming to mind and I feel myself clench. Hands come to my hips, raising them up and I set my jaw, predicting pain to follow next. Instead, I feel hot breath on me before a smooth tongue meets my entrance, making me gasp. “What are- fuck.” He licks lightly, leaving me wet and when he breathes it turns everywhere he’s licked soothingly cold.

“Whenever I get hurt I just lick my injury and it helps it get better.” He pauses to explain, then continues, starting to stick his tongue inside and lick at my sore walls. I’m at his mercy; the sensation feeling too amazing and honestly making me feel a lot better.

He stops after a few minutes. “Feeling better now?” he asks.

I can only nod, too embarrassed and mind full of confusing thoughts to answer properly.

“You are much too nice for that mean Cody man.” He crosses his arms, huffing.

He’s right. My whole life I haven’t had the greatest run with guys; all of them turning out to be douchebags. I realize now that Cody has joined their ranks, actually being there for a while but me refusing to see it. Phil has shown me more care than he ever did. He’s proof that I can do so much better. “Phil?” I say, looking back at him.

He meets my eyes, “Yes?”

“I… I do want to… ‘mate’ with you.” I feel so stupid saying it, my face heating up like the rest of my body.

Phil moans at my words and kneels up, giving me my first view of his cock. Now, I’m not trying to say Cody’s small… Aw, fuck it; he’s down right tiny compared to Phil. I gulp, not sure if I can handle him.

He presses into me and I feel the familiar stretch and burning, making me grip the sheets tightly but unlike with Cody I don’t mind it much. After a few moments he’s all the way in, his hips flush against my ass. He starts in fast right away, making low growling noises and nipping at my shoulders, driving me wild. Even though he’s being slightly rough and is much bigger than Cody, I’m not hurting as much as usual. I can enjoy the friction inside me and feel my bliss rising.

Then, in one deep thrust he hits my prostate, sending a shockwave up my spine. He pounds into it over and over and I forget to breathe, lungs seizing as I cum onto the sheets. He soon follows, bucking wildly as he rides it out. He pulls out and I collapse, energy spent and mind in a daze.

He lays down next to me, pulling me towards him and turning me so he can snuggle up to me. He wraps his arms around me just like how we woke up. I pet his hair, scratching behind his ears. “Later today, I am definitely breaking up with Cody.” I tell him, staring into his eyes.

He just smiles, nuzzling into my chest and pulling me closer, the sweet smell of strawberries wafting over me.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan comes across an abandoned cat in an alleyway and takes it back home in hopes of companionship. When he wakes up the next day to a man with cat-like ears and tail, his world is turned upside down. Though their relationship is more than both of them bargained for, they soon find they need each other more than anything else.

I love being human. I’m still not all too sure how this even happened, but I’m glad it did. Back in that alley a few weeks ago, I thought I was a goner. That big dog had chased me out from under the porch where my previous owners had left me under before moving away, leaving me to defend myself for the first time in my life. I’d grown up in a shelter along with my brothers and sisters. I’d hear sad and angry cries day and night, all kinds of animal pining at humans for a new home. I didn’t know why they wanted out of their home when everything they needed was there. Sure, it was crowded, but it was what I knew. One day my mom finally explained to me that if you’re in there too long and the other humans don’t think you’ll ever be taken they put you to sleep. I liked sleeping, so I didn’t know why it was a bad thing until they took her and I never saw her again.

When the family who adopted me came and got me I was confused. Why were they taking me from my family? I wanted to stay there. Once I was at my new home, however, I grew attached to it. The people were nice, giving me my name, Phil, and their child was nice, playing with me sometimes. A year went by, then one day they were gone for a while, leaving a bunch of food out for me to last a few days. When they came back, they had another child. Soon after that was when they started boxing up things, talking about a ‘bigger home’.

Then the big thing came by that they put all of their boxes in and the dad of the home came up to me, kneeling down to scratch under my chin. I thought he was going to pick me up and put me in the big thing with the rest of the home, but he reached for my collar instead and I knew what he was going to do. I ran away from him, the tags on my collar breaking off in his hand as he tried to grab for me. They knew about the sleeping in the old home, so they were going to just leave me here. I heard humans do that a lot.

Once the humans left I went back to the house, not knowing where else to go. I stayed under their porch, the lingering smell of them comforting yet painful at the same time. What was I going to do now? I’d always had food placed before me, I’ve never hunted before. A few days went by, catching bugs here and there but it wasn’t really enough. That’s when the dog came. I’d seen it prowling behind the front window of the house across the street, staring at me, before the owners opened their door to let it out. It came straight for me and I ran, to where I didn’t know except to get away.

It trapped me in that alley after I’d tried jumping into a giant can but it was filled with bad smelling food and other things and it tipped over on me. The dog growled at me and I was too scared to even hiss back, trying to climb up the wall behind me but my claws were still fairly short from the last time my owners cut them.

I heard a loud noise, smacking on the ground and a loud voice. The dog turned away from me and I took the opportunity to hide under something. I was shaking so much from the cold and from fear I knew I wasn’t well hidden at all; the thing on top of me moving as well. After a moment I heard a clicking sound and the same voice as before but softer now. “It’s ok, little kitty. I won’t bite like that mean old dog.”

I poked my head out to see an outstretched hand and I sniffed it, the smell so yummy I found myself rubbing against it. This human must have scared the mean dog away! The human picked me up and held me and I felt at home again in his arms, so warm and comforting.

A lot of things happened after that. I thought it was weird that my new owner seemed to have an owner. I’d never heard of such a thing and his owner was very mean to him. Hurt him a lot and made me mad because this human was very nice and didn’t deserve that at all. Even after that, though, the human still managed to smile at me, giving me lots of food and making me smell nice again which was good because the awful smell on me was hurting my nose.

He got into his big sleeping place and I curled up next to him, him telling me that he would give me a name the next day. I felt happier than I had in a long time. Even with my humans before, I never felt as welcome as I did under this human’s hand, petting down my back as his eyes slowly closed. Oh, how I wished I could tell him how I felt. He was so much kinder than the humans in my first home and so much more loving than my last humans. I wanted to thank him properly, the way I’d always seen humans do it. Wrapping their arms around each other or putting their mouths together like when we cats touched noses. I fell asleep beside him with these thoughts in my head.

When I woke up the next morning I felt different. I looked down at myself and thought I was still dreaming. I had arms and legs like a human, long and pale in contrast to my usual dark fur. There was no fur now, except a little bit on my chest but I didn’t think humans called it that. I was scared, uncomfortable in my body, but then soon realized my wish had come true. I was human now! I could thank the human man that saved me. I looked over to see he was still beside me; not abandoning me in the night like my nightmares had suggested. I quickly grabbed him, limbs awkward but I managed to wrap them around him. Me moving him woke him up, which was when the fun started.

He was just as freaked out as I was at first, wondering how the cat he’d saved the day before was now a human like him. I didn’t know how to explain too well so I just grabbed him up again and thanked him properly, squeezing him as tight as I could and he seemed to calm down after that. I felt like it wasn’t enough. He saved my life; how could I ever repay him for that? After a quick distraction I remembered the bad man from yesterday and I thought I would help him feel better after he had gotten hurt.

He didn’t like it at first, squirming around and stuff, but after a while he started making noises I’d never heard humans make before. They were odd, but I liked them. He told me that he wanted to mate with me, which he’d denied before, the silly human. I’d never mated with someone, so I let my instincts drive me as I made him make even more sounds. I nipped at his neck, showing my dominance over him and he submitted easily.

After we mated, it was like we were equal. He was my mate, both of us human, although I for some reason still had my cat ears and tail which made it hard for me to go outside. He taught me so many human things like eating with ‘utensils’ and wearing clothes, which since I didn’t go out much he let me wear only little around the house. I also learned his name is Dan, which I can’t stop saying all the time; shouting it before pouncing on him and making him laugh.

The mean man didn’t come over anymore, which made me happy as well. Dan said he ‘broke up with him’, whatever that meant. Humans have so many names and terms for things it’s hard to keep up with them all.

Yesterday I told him that being a human is complicated and that I missed being a cat sometimes. It’s worth it if I’m able to be with him, but I still miss the simple life and especially my original body. I’m still awkward with this human one, tripping and bumping into stuff. Dan is always there to help me, picking me back up and telling me it’s ok and that I’m cute when I’m clumsy. He makes me feel wanted like never before.

I sit here now on Dan’s sofa, watching the noise box he calls a ‘television’. He left it on the ‘Animal Planet channel’ before he left to run some errands and I’ve stared at it intently ever since. It showed life outside in faraway places, really big cats called leopards, cheetahs, and lions, the smallest of them about as big as I was when I was a cat. Watching them play with each other made me miss my original family again; how my siblings and I would roll around our enclosure all day.

I hear Dan come in the door and I break my eyes away from the television, running over to him and pulling on his arm. “Dan! Dan! You have to see the big cats!” I tell him. I drag him to the living room before even letting him set his bag down and I point to the screen, jumping up and down. “Look! They’re massive!”

He laughs. “Yeah, they are. You know, you’re bigger now and still have cat ears; so you’re kind of like a big cat.”

I beam at him, teasing my hair up with my fingers and making it poofy like the lions mane on the screen, rawring at him. He smiles, then gets serious again, “You really do miss being a cat don’t you?”

“Yeah, I miss being around other cats, too. I don’t mind, though, because I have you.” I smile, bringing him into a big hug which he returns, scratching my ears. His hugs are the best, so warm and soft. Just this makes me forget about my past life for a moment.

He pulls back, fixing my hair as he looks over me. He seems bashful, face turning red. “What would you do if, maybe, I were a cat, too?”

“I like you how you are.”

He blushes even more now, “I know, but… What if I were?”

I giggle, picturing him just like me with fuzzy cat ears and a tail. “It’d be fun, and you would be cute.”

He clears his throat, looking away now. “Phil, um… stay here for a bit, ok?” He lets me go and heads for his bedroom, closing the door behind him. I wonder why he’s acting so weird. Did I say something wrong? Maybe I shouldn’t have told him about me missing other cats; I don’t want him to think I don’t like being with him or anything.

I sit back down to watch the lions again and after a little while I hear Dan calling me. “Phil? C-could you come here?” I get up and make my way towards the bedroom, opening the door.

Dan sits on the bed, nervously clasping his hands together, wearing a fake pair of cat ears, perfectly matching his hair color. He’s drawn a cat like nose and whiskers on his face and as I look lower he has on a pair of underwear that looks like the leopards I was just watching on the television. I stare at him, not knowing what to say. I find myself finally stepping towards him, stopping just in front of him.

“I, uh…” he stammers, shifting uncomfortably, “You’ve been talking the past few days about how you’d been lonely without other cats around, so…”

I can’t hold back any longer, pushing him down onto the bed and falling next to him. I embrace him tightly, nuzzling into his neck. “It’s perfect, Dan. I love it.” He relaxes into me, holding me back. I see something behind him and my eyes go wide. “You even have a tail!” It pokes out of his underwear and I go to touch it, wanting to pull it towards me so I can see it better, but he groans and I quickly let it go.

“Sorry! Does it hurt like when I get my tail pulled? I thought it was fake.”

He shakes his head, covering his face slightly with his hand. “It doesn’t hurt…”

I tilt my head, not understanding. I reach over again but this time pulling his underwear down a bit. I see that the tail is connected to something and that something is stuck in his ass. How curious. I pull at it again and Dan moans, his fingers clasping over his mouth tighter now. This is enjoyable?

“I-I know it’s not the same as your tail, but…” he says, but I shake my head. He looks at me and I pull his hand away from his mouth to kiss him. As our tongues play with each other I pull at the bottom of his tail again, making it go in and out even more now. His noises reverberate into my mouth, sounding just like when we mate at night, making me start to get hard.

My finger brushes over something on the tail thing, feeling like one of the switches on Dan’s walls but smaller. I flick it and Dan jumps, pressing into me with a yelp as I hear the tail thing make a low buzzing noise. At first I think it scared him like it surprised me, but he starts squirming and moaning even louder now, lightly clawing at my back.

“Does that feel good?” I ask and he nods, breathing out a whine and snaking his hand down to my crotch. He palms me though my pyjamas and I find myself starting to make the same noises that he is, feeling odd making them but they seem to be coming naturally.

I feel his crotch rubbing against me and I can tell he’s tipping over the edge pretty fast. I pull the tail out of him, turning it off and tossing it aside as I sit up, pulling him up with me. He slips off his underwear, his cock dripping with precum. After taking off my pyjamas, I start to position him but he stops, touching my hand. “You know, there are other ways humans have sex.”

“There are?”

Dan nods and lies back down on his back. He pulls my hand and directs me between his legs, looking up at me. “This way I can hold you.”

I smile, liking that he wants to be able to hold me. I situate myself and hold his hip as I press into him, his insides warm and slick. I lean down and he wraps his arms around my neck as I squeeze my arm under him to hold him back. I think I like this new way of mating. I get to see his face and hold him and kiss him. I wonder how many other ways there are that humans do this.

I start thrusting into him, his heavy breathing now right next to my ear. I nibble his ear and neck as he wraps his legs around my hips, almost able to move with me. As I start to go harder the fake ears on his head start to come off. He reaches up to fix them but I get to them first, pulling them off. “But-“

I cut him off, kissing him quickly, then look into his eyes. “I like you just the way you are. You don’t need to change or be something else for me.”

He bites his lip, tears dotting at the corners of his eyes and pulls me down again, holding me as tightly as he can and burying his head in my shoulder as I ram into him. I start getting close and I grip the sheets near his head, letting out a groan as I feel myself release into him. He does the same, his cum spilling out over his stomach as I ride him through it, his head thrown back and eyes shut tight, drawn on nose and whiskers now smudged.

I lie there on top of him, out of breath, letting my heartbeat slowly go back to normal. That was even better than the other times we’ve done it, I think. It was amazing being able to see his face as I made him feel good; almost better than his simple smiles I see through-out the day.

“Dan?”

He opens his eyes again to look at me, his face flush from exertion. “Hmm?”

“Will you teach me other ways of mating?” He smiles and nods, pressing a kiss to my cheek.

I realize that I may miss being a cat and being around other cats, but it really is fine if I get to stay with Dan. He makes me happy in so many ways I never knew were possible and I owe him so much. I hope I get to learn all kinds of ways to make him happy; and to make him purr.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan comes across an abandoned cat in an alleyway and takes it back home in hopes of companionship. When he wakes up the next day to a man with cat-like ears and tail, his world is turned upside down. Though their relationship is more than both of them bargained for, they soon find they need each other more than anything else.

“Dan, please!” I beg Dan, my arms wrapped tightly around his legs. “I’ll be good! I swear!”

Dan crosses his arms and looks away, knowing that he can’t look at me without caving. It’s been so long since I’ve been here now and I love it but I’m so cooped up. When I was a just a little cat houses were huge and I had so much room to run around in. Now that I’m person size it’s only a few strides to one end of the apartment to the other. I’m so restless I find myself jumping up and down in place and squirming a lot. Dan calls it ‘spring fever’.

“I just don’t think you’re ready yet, Phil. You’ve never been outside before and there are a lot of dangerous things out there.” Dan still won’t look at me, huffing and holding his arms tighter.

“But I’ve been watching a lot of TV and learning how to act outside. Not just Animal Planet, but real people shows.” I just need air. I sit by the open window a lot when Dan’s away, watching the other people below and wondering what the view is like from down there.

“What shows have you been watching?” Dan finally looks at me, curious.

“There’s one with a Doctor and there’s lots of different people that are all shapes and sizes and colors but I’m not sure if they’re all people.” That show was really confusing to me; although they showed cat people on it once that left me with my nose pressed to the screen.

“Wait… Does the Doctor have a big blue box?”

“Yes! Tarter!” I exclaim.

“It’s ’Tardis’ and that’s Doctor Who.” Dan laughs, “The weird people are aliens, which you don’t actually see on a daily basis so that’s not a very good show to go off of.”

I rack my brain for another show that I’d seen. “I remember Sherlock.”

Dan thinks for a moment then lets out a sigh. “I suppose that one’s alright, just so long as you don’t treat people like Sherlock does.”

“So, I have learned a lot. Please, Dan, I promise to stay with you and do whatever you say!” I hop up and down a bit on my knees and blink up at Dan, trying to put on ultimate cuteness to win him over.

“I suppose we can try, ok?” He pulls me up by my shoulders and I grab him in a big hug, kissing him roughly and leaving him to catch his breath. “You realize this means clothes, right?”

I look down at my boxers, which is what I’m use to wearing around the house. Clothes were so cumbersome and they got in the way of my tail. But if I had to wear them to be able to go outside, I’ll do it.

Dan takes me to his room and helps me into some pants. They’re too tight for me to hide my tail in so I end up having to wrap it around my tummy under a big green hoodie, it being loose enough so there’s no tell-tale bump at the bottom. I examine myself in the mirror, not quite minding how I look. I look normal except for my ears. “What about these?” I point to my head.

Dan comes over and wraps his arms around my neck before pulling the hood up over my head. My ears are squished down and it feels weird but you can’t see them anymore. Anyone passing by would never know I was some weird part cat guy. I smile, feeling more equal to Dan that I have before.

“Now listen, Phil. We’re going to go somewhere where you can run around and get all of your energy out but until we get there you have to stay with me and hold my hand.” Dan explains.

“Hold your hand?” Dan holds out his hand and I hold out mine, him taking it and lacing fingers. “Oh! They did this in Sherlock and in Doctor Who a lot. Are we going to run now?”

“No.” Dan laughs, pulling me by my hand towards the door. He grabs his phone and wallet, taking a deep breath. He looks so nervous, like something might go wrong and it makes me start to get nervous, too. The outside isn’t that much of a scary place, is it? It seems so fun on TV and I never see scary stuff outside the window.

“Let’s go!” I urge him and he half smiles before leading me out the door.

The city is so much bigger than I expected. I wanted to run around as soon as we got down to the ground but Dan said no, holding my hand tighter. It’s fun watching everyone as they pass, men and woman, young and old. Dan says it’s not polite to stare but I can’t help it. Everything is so fascinating with new sights and smells I didn’t know about from way up in the flat. It’s almost a sensory overload.

We get to a big area full of grass and trees and lots of children running around. “Oh, I know what this is! A bark.”

“A ‘park’.” Dan corrects, “Bark is what dogs do.”

“Oh, yeah.” I wrinkle my nose at the thought but then quickly dismiss it. “So can I run now?”

“Yes, you can-“ I start running, dragging Dan behind me. He yelps but finally gathers himself, running along with me.

I come upon a huge metal structure, lots of kids on it climbing around like the monkeys on TV. “Is this the gym thing?”

“Yes, it’s a jungle gym.” Dan catches his breath beside me, resting his hands on his knees. “I wouldn’t climb on it around the kids, though. I think there’s a smaller one down the way.” He points in a general direction and we start heading towards it, eager to try it.

We find the smaller one that has things tied up to ropes and a big thing I know is called a slide. I let go of Dan’s hand and make my way around, finding a ladder and climbing up it clumsily, almost slipping. Once I’m at the top I wave down to Dan, who waves back with a smile. “Aren’t you coming up?”

“I’m fine down here.” He says and I shrug, sitting down at the top of the slide and pushing off. The wind whips past my face as I slide down, thumping my feet down at the bottom so I didn’t land on my butt. It’s a small slide but I feel like I’m soaring! I jump up and do it again and again, almost tripping up the ladder a few times. Dan leans against one of the posts, watching me. “You seem to be enjoying yourself.”

“I love this!” I tell him as I get to the bottom of the slide again. “Come join me!”

“I don’t think so.” He smirks but I go over to him and grab his hand, yanking him towards the ladder with a grumble. He follows me up the ladder and I push him over to the slide. He sits down, long legs sticking out down the slide. “Do I really have to do this? It’s for little kids.”

I sit down behind him, putting my legs on either side of him and wrapping my arms around his waist. He shifts around, trying to get comfortable. “You’re really squishing me.” He complains, but I can see the smile creeping up on his face.

I chuckle. “Sorry.” I keep an arm wrapped around his waist and use the other to push off, making us slide down together. We both try to catch ourselves at the bottom but our legs end up tangling together, making us fly right off the end and land on the ground. We laugh, Dan’s face lightening up from his earlier tense self. I know he’s nervous about me being outside like this; that someone may see. I promised him I’d be careful, though, even tugging on my hood once in a while to make sure it was on properly.

Dan gets up off the ground, brushing off the back of his pants and holding out a hand for me. I take it and he pulls me up, brushing myself off as well. “Do you want to try the swings?” he asks, gesturing towards the rope things, “I’ll push you.”

I nod quickly and run over to them then realize I don’t know what to do with them. Dan tells me I’m supposed to sit down on them so I do, cautiously balancing and hanging onto the ropes for dear life as they wobble. Dan comes behind me and grabs the ropes, pulling me back. I keep my legs up off the ground and as he releases me I swing forward, feeling just like how I did on the slide and loving it. Then I start to go backwards and I freak out, gripping the ropes tight. It goes forward again, then back again, over and over. “I don’t like this.” I tell him. He instructs me to put my feet down and I do but a bit too firmly, making me stop abruptly and my legs hurt.

“Are you ok?” he asks and I nod, standing up. I think I’ll stick with the slide from now on.

I make my way over to it but stop, hearing something odd. A melody in the air that didn’t sound like anything I’d heard in the city so far. “What’s that sound?”

Dan listens carefully, head tilting. “Oh, that’s an ice cream truck. Do you want to try some ice cream?”

I haven’t heard of ice cream before; if it was anything like the swings I don’t think I’ll like it. “What is it?”

“It’s something you eat and it’s made of milk or cream.” I remember having milk before and it tasted amazing. If there’s something made of it I definitely want to try it.

Dan and I follow the sound of the music until we see a crowd of kids and their parents gathered around a big truck. I stop, pulling Dan’s sleeve. It looks like the big truck thing that took my other family away, only smaller. I don’t want to get too close to it. Dan notices my nervousness, touching my hand. “How about you go wait for me on that bench and I’ll get you some?”

I nod, seeing the bench he was talking about and going over to it. I sit down and let my head fall back, careful to keep my hood on. The sky is so clear today it makes me calm down, letting the warmth of the sun shine down on me. I’m kind of hot in this hoodie, it being warm out and having been running around for a while. I wish I could take it off.

I feel the weight of bench shift and I see a lady has sat down next to me, her hands in some kind of bag. She’s fairly pretty; her light hair blowing in the wind. I haven’t been able to talk to anyone else besides Dan. Maybe I could try with her? I’ve learned enough from TV right?

I turn to her, sitting up straight. “Hello.”

She glances up from her bag with a quick smile. “Hi.”

“Lovely weather we’re having.”

She giggles and nods. “Yes, it is.”

I try to think of something else to say, nervous but I think I’m doing an ok job so far. “Your hair is really pretty.”

She stops rummaging in her bag, finally giving full attention to me. “Thank you.” Her red lips curl into a smile and I can’t help but smile, too.

“Do you come here often?” I ask. Maybe nice people like her come here a lot. I hope so. Maybe I can get her to come play with me and Dan on the slide.

She genuinely laughs, covering her mouth. “Wow, you’re pulling out all the classic lines, huh?”

I cock my head, not understanding. Lines? I wasn’t pulling out anything…

“Phil?” I look up to see Dan holding some things in his hand. It must be the ice cream. He looks between me and the lady, a weird look on his face. “What are you doing?”

“Talking with the nice lady.” She blushes, looking back down at her bag.

Dan steps forward, handing me an ice cream. I take it, feeling the cold in my hand and I’m not sure what to make of it. With one of his hands now free, he takes my other hand and pulls me up off the bench, huffing as he drags me away. I shout a quick ‘goodbye’ to the lady, hoping I find her here again.

I guess Dan wants to go back to the slide now, so I follow him, looking down at my ice cream. It’s begun to drip and I lick some of it off my finger. It’s delicious! I start licking it up, accidentally bumping my nose into it once as Dan roughly pulls me along.

I see the exit of the park ahead and I stop, making Dan turn around. “I thought we were going to keep playing.”

“No, Phil. We’re going home.” He says, clearly upset. He’s never looked at me like this before. Last time I saw him like this was when Cody had stopped by a few months ago to get the last of his stuff. I let him continue to drag me home, waiting until were in the door to breach the subject any further.

I pull my hood off, thankful to be able to free my ears finally. He takes off his shoes and starts for the stairs but I grab his hand. “What’s wrong?” I squeeze his hand and he pulls it away.

“I leave you alone for just a few minutes and you start flirting with someone.” He gestures to the door.

“Flirting?” I don’t think I saw anything about that on TV. Was it bad?

“You were complimenting that lady about her hair and chatting her up. That’s flirting, Phil.” He crosses his arms, anger making his face redden.

“I just wanted to get to know her and ask if she wanted to play on the slide with us.” I explain, eating up the last of my ice cream with a big bite. I suddenly feel a pain in my head, my hand clamping over it. “Ow!”

Dan sighs, his expression losing some of its edge, and comes closer to me and places his hands on either side of my head. “Push your tongue to the roof of your mouth. It’ll help.”

I do so, feeling my headache start to subside. “That hurt.”

“That was an ice cream headache, or ‘brain freeze’.”

“Ice cream can do that?” I didn’t know food could hurt you. “Ice cream is evil.”

Dan lets out a smile, shaking his head. “You just have to eat it slowly and it’ll be ok.”

I look at him, placing my hands on his hips and he tenses up. “I’m sorry I made you mad. I didn’t know I was doing something bad.”

He lets his hands fall down my arms, taking my hands in his. “You weren’t, I just… I get jealous.”

“What’s jealous?”

He thinks for a moment. “It’s like a sadness. When you want someone all to yourself but you see them around other people and you feel sad that they aren’t with you.”

“So… I can’t make more friends?” I want to get to know a lot of people and learn more about humans; but not if it’ll make Dan sad.

“It’s not about friends, it’s about… well, mates.” Scratches his neck, “I thought you might have wanted to… ‘mate’ with that lady.”

I giggle, Dan’s assumptions sounding ridiculous. “Dan, you know I only want to mate with you.”

I push him back, making him trip and fall back on the stairs. “P-Phil, what are you doing?”

“I’m gonna make sure you never doubt me again, ok? I’ll never mate with anyone else but you.” After setting the ice cream container down, I pull at his belt, unfastening it and unbuttoning his pants.

He leans back on his elbows, watching me work my fingers. “Phil, we can’t really have sex on the stairs.”

“Yes we can.” One night when Dan went to bed early for a change I had stayed up late, trying to find more shows to watch. I came across a new channel and was fascinated by it. For some reason there was a show that showed people mating. Why would there be a show about that? I guess there’s a channel for everything. I watched them do so many things, a lot of them giving me ideas to try with Dan since they all seemed to enjoy what they were doing. Humans are so creative sometimes.

I pull at his pants, slipping them and his underwear down enough to make his cock pop out of his pants. It’s only about half hard but as soon as I touch it Dan lets out a gasp. I gently rub it up and down, his warmth being a great difference compared to the cold ice cream I had just held. He moans, head leaning back to rest on a step.

Once he’s properly hard I lean forward, licking his tip and making him moan, his hand on my head. I smile, licking at it more and sucking, just like on the TV. I start to bring more of him into my mouth and he groans, fingers tangling in my hair and I get all the way down to his base. I’m not quite sure if I’m supposed to do anything with my tongue still, so I just start licking him all around, moving my head up and down.

“Fuck, Phil.” Dan moans, hips moving up into my mouth, his dick pushing back into my throat a bit. I go faster, the friction in my mouth like this feeling odd but Dan is loving it. He keeps thrusting his hips up and I let him, trying to move with him. “I’m g- shit… I’m gonna cum…”

I suck harder, his cock shoving deep into my throat as he cries out my name. I feel him cum, the warm liquid going down my throat, numbed still from the cool ice cream so I can’t taste much of it. I pull up and move to sit next to him on the stairs, watching as he catches his breath. He looks over to me, brushing his hair off of his face. “What about you?”

“I’m ok. I wanted to show you how much I care about you.” Not that the sight of Dan being a mess like this wasn’t a big turn on, but my needs aren’t what’s important right now. Dan needed reassurance that I wasn’t going to leave him for some stranger, which is silly. I’d never leave my mate.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan comes across an abandoned cat in an alleyway and takes it back home in hopes of companionship. When he wakes up the next day to a man with cat-like ears and tail, his world is turned upside down. Though their relationship is more than both of them bargained for, they soon find they need each other more than anything else.

I wake up and reach across the bed while I stretch to find it empty. Where’s Dan? I sit up, looking around our room. Odd noises come from down the hall and I get up, following them to the bathroom. It’s closed and I can hear awful noises coming from it. It sounds like when I use to get furballs. I didn’t think humans got furballs, did they?

I knock on the door, worried. “Dan? Are you ok?”

I can hear him breathing heavily, “I’m ok. Just sick.”

Tension crawls up my spine as I remember my time back at the animal shelter. There were lots of animals there that would get sick. Some would just have sneezes and the humans would give them special food and they’d get better. Others would get so sick they’d end up going away like the ones they put to sleep.

Dan sounds are horrid, so he must be really sick. I don’t want Dan to leave me! He’s all I have! I open the door and Dan is sitting on the floor in front of the toilet. I drop down and grab him, pulling him up into the biggest hug. “Don’t leave me, Dan!”

“What?” Dan pushes me back with shaky arms and I can see that he’s sticky with sweat and his face is pale. It’s worse than I thought.

“I don’t want you to go away because you’re sick.” I wouldn’t be able to live without him.

“I just have a flu. I’ll be fine as long as I take it easy.” He goes to stand up and I help him, his legs not cooperating very well. He goes to the sink and rinses out his mouth, seeing himself in the mirror and grimacing.

He asks for my help getting back to bed and I happily oblige, wrapping an arm around his waist. I lay him down after he strips off his clothes, complaining of being hot. He looks so miserable and he’s nothing like himself. I want him to stop being sick as soon as possible. “Is there anything humans do to get better?”

Dan stares up at the ceiling for a while, thinking. “You can get me flu medicine. It’s in the cupboard in the hall.”

I nod and run to the hall before I ask him what meddysin is. It shouldn’t be that hard to figure out and I don’t have time to ask. I open the cupboard and look around it, seeing boxes and bottles and other odd items. Which one is meddysin? I grab an odd shaped bottle with a handle on it and take it to Dan. “Is this meddysin?”

Dan opens his eyes and looks over to me. “No, Phil, that’s bathroom cleaner.”

I look at the bottle, an odd creature on it with bubbles and a shower door. “Oh.”

“The medicine will be in a smaller bottle and have a little cup on top.”

I go back to the cupboard, putting back the bathroom cleaner and seeing a bottle with a cup on top just like Dan said and I bring that to him. “This?”

“Close.” He tells me with a weak smile. “That’s mouthwash. Try smaller.”

I growl, getting frustrated. Why do humans have so many different things? All these bottles and liquids are so confusing I don’t know how they can tell them all apart. I shuffle things around in the cupboard, digging into the back and finding a small container of purple liquid. I bring it back to Dan and show it to him.

“Yes, that’s medicine. Good job, Phil.” He congratulates me and I perk back up a bit, glad I finally got it right. I hand it to him and watch as he pours a bit into the little cup and drinks it, making a funny face.

“Does it taste bad?”

“Yeah, medicine usually tastes bad.” He sets the meddysin down on his nightstand and lays back down, sighing and closing his eyes again. He looks so tired, the bags under his eyes even more prominent against his paled skin.

What else can I do to make him feel better? I don’t know much about human sickness. Do they need certain treatments? Does he need to go to the vet? Maybe I can make him something to eat or drink so the icky taste is out of his mouth at least. “Dan?”

“Yeah?” he mumbles.

“I can make you some tea if you want.”

He opens his eyes a sliver, eyebrows furrowing. “You’ve never made tea before.”

“I know how! I’ve seen you do it a bunch of times.”

“Are you sure?” he doubts.

“I can do it, Dan!” I want to help him feel better as soon as possible. It’s not that hard to make tea.

“Ok.” He agrees and I bounce off to the kitchen.

I look at the half full kettle that Dan uses to heat up the water and decide which button to push. I think he usually pushes the one on the far left. I click it and it lights up so I take it as a sign I picked the right one. As I wait for the water to heat up, I open all the cabinets, looking for the teabags until I finally find them. A few fall out of the box as I reach into it for a bag, not bothering to actually take it down from the shelf first.

The bag smells really nice and I get excited, remembering the bags of catnip I use to play with at my old house. I wonder if it tastes the same. I rip it open, looking at the tea leaves scattered over my hand and the counter. It sure does look like catnip and I find myself licking it, regretting it right away. The leaves taste horrible and stick to my tongue, unable to wipe them off. I turn on the faucet and stick my head under, washing the nasty leaves off my tongue. How can Dan drink something made from these leaves when they taste so nasty?

I shrug, grabbing one of the other bags that fell down onto the counter and set it next to the kettle. Now I need a cup. I look past the cabinets I’ve left open until I see the one with cups in it. I grab one and set that next to the kettle as well, still waiting for it to heat up.

I sit down on the floor, head leaning against the oven door, waiting for the kettle to boil. I usually left Dan to go play and by the time I came back the tea would be ready, so I’m not sure how long it actually takes. I’m not even sure what boiling is, really, I just know it has to do that to be hot enough.

I close my eyes, picturing Dan all better and cuddling with me on the sofa. I smile, thinking back to a few days ago when Dan showed me a movie called The Lion King. I loved it so much I made him play it again right away. I hope we can watch it again soon.

I start to hear a funny noise coming from the counter and I stand up to see the water dancing. Is this boiling? It look so fascinating I reach out to touch it. My finger lands on the glass kettle to poke at the bubbles and I yelp, the glass of course being really hot.

“Phil? Are you ok?” I hear Dan’s groggy voice down the hall. I yell back that I’m alright before sticking my finger in my mouth, turning back to the kettle. I glair at it, growling. I will make Dan tea, kettle. You won’t beat me.

I grab the handle this time and hold it at arm’s length as I pour the water into the cup. I then throw the tea bag in, the dark leaves changing the colour of the water. Dan usually puts sugar in his tea, so I should probably add that, too. I grab the container of sugar and pour some in, making the tea rise to the brim. He’ll need a lot of sugar to make it not taste so icky. Once that’s done I grab a spoon from the drawer and set that in the cup. I think that’s it!

I grasp the cup be the handle, not wanting to burn myself again, but pick it up too quickly, making it splash onto my hand. “Ow!”

“Are you sure you’re ok out there?” Dan calls.

“Yeah, I’m on my way now.” I walk slowly, eyes not leaving the cup, hoping to will it with my mind to stay in its place. I get to Dan’s room and nudge the door open wider with my foot, stepping inside.

“Phil, what-“

“Shh.” I tell him, “Concentrating.”

He watches as I snail’s pace it over to his bedside table, setting the cup down carefully, then pulling away, throwing my arms up. “I did it!”

He laughs. “Yes, you did.” He opens his arms and I try not to pounce onto him, wrapping my arms around him as he scratches my ears. “What was all the yelling in the kitchen?”

I blush at my hand, embarrassed to admit I’d made a mess of the simplest of tasks. “I hurt my hand ‘cause the water was hot.”

“You have to be careful next time.” He pats the spot next to him and I crawl over him to lie down, scrunching up next to his chest. He takes my hand, looking at where it’s reddened, and kisses it.

I smile, feeling better. He starts to slowly stir his tea, setting the spoon down on the table and then the tea bag on top of it. “At least you remembered to leave the string alone.” Last time I’d seen him with tea and saw the string I’d grabbed at it and made him spill it on himself. He picks up the tea, blowing on it before taking a sip.

He makes an awful face and I frown. “How much sugar did you put in here?”

“Um… Is it wrong?” I knew it wasn’t enough. I screwed something else up. I’m never going to get this being human thing when I can barely do things Dan and other people do every day. Dan would probably like me more if I’d have stayed a cat.

Dan sets down his tea and lifts my chin, making me look at him. “Don’t feel bad. Just you trying to help me has made me so happy and you beside me is the best medicine in the world.”

“Really?”

“Really.” He kisses my forehead and I nuzzle under his chin. “Which means there is much cuddling to be done.”

“Can we watch The Lion King again?” I ask, tail swishing behind me.

“I’ll bring it up on my laptop.” We end up only getting a few minutes in before Dan falls asleep, his head tucked into my shoulder. I look down at him, fingers brushing through his hair. I hope I can keep helping him and taking care of him like this. Just like how he helped me.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan comes across an abandoned cat in an alleyway and takes it back home in hopes of companionship. When he wakes up the next day to a man with cat-like ears and tail, his world is turned upside down. Though their relationship is more than both of them bargained for, they soon find they need each other more than anything else.

“What are they doing?”

I look down at Phil, his head resting on my lap as he plays with the yoyo I bought him the other day. He’d seen it on a rare trip outside and wondered about the contraption, asking me what it was for and when I said it had a string he begged me to get it. I bought it and he’s played with it every day since, either making the yoyo properly spin like I showed him or just tangling his fingers in the strings.

He’s paused his playing now, eyes trained on the TV. An advert for a jewelry store is on, a blushing bride showing off her sparkling wedding ring to her bridesmaids. They all gasp in astonishment and awe, the hefty price for the hunk of diamond and metal appearing in the corner.

“What’s on the lady’s finger?” Phil asks, round eyes looking up at me.

“It’s a wedding ring. When people get married they both wear rings to show that they’re together.” I explain, scratching behind his ears a bit.

“Where do you get a ‘married’? The ladies seem really happy about it.” Phil sits up, pulling his fingers out of the knots he’s made in his yoyo string.

“Um, no, it’s not something you buy.” I look off to the window, trying to think of the simplest way to explain such a big event. “When you care about someone a lot and want to be with them for the rest of your life you ask them to marry you; that’s when you give them the ring. If they care for you back then you can get married to them. You have a kind of party with all your favorite family and friends and you and the person you’re marrying stand at the front, telling each other why you care about each other and saying certain lines from a book. Then when it’s all done you kiss and you’re officially married.”

I turn back to Phil to find his gaze hasn’t faltered from me the whole time I was explaining. “That sounds really fun.”

“I suppose it would be fun, yeah.” I smile.

“And both the married people wear that wedding ring?” Phil asks, looking down at his slender fingers.

“Yup; so when people see you wearing it they know you’re married.”

“Have you ever married someone?”

I laugh, the thought ridiculous, but notice his seriousness. “No, I haven’t.” I’ve never had a boyfriend worth marrying. Phil is the first guy to ever treat me properly and care for me. I can never show him how grateful I am for him being in my life.

“Would you want to?” Phil twirls the string around the center of the yoyo, eyes on it instead of me like he just asked the simplest of questions.

I sit there for a moment, imagination looking towards the future. I wouldn’t mind getting married someday. Maybe settle into a house with a kid or two. It’s a nice idea. “Yeah, I can see myself getting married.”

“What about to me?”

I blink at him. “What?”

He comes closer to me, kneeling between my legs that are stretched out on the sofa. “Would you marry me?”

I stare at him, lost for words. Phil and I getting married? It’d never occurred to me. I’m just so use to having him around now; it’s lulled me into a rhythm. Wake up to Phil, spend all my free time home with Phil, go to bed with Phil, repeat. Isn’t that what married couples do anyway? When I really look to the future, can I imagine it without him? Before Phil, I’d always envisioned my future around what I’d be doing, not who I’d be with. Now, I can’t even imagine a tomorrow without him by my side.

I sit up, crossing my legs and grabbing his hands. His eyes lock onto mine and I give him a small smile. “Yes, I would.”

He grins, tail behind him swishing back and forth. “Ok, then.” He lets go of my hands and grabs up his yoyo. Pulling the string out, he tells me to hold up my hand. I do and he begins to wrap the string around my middle finger.

“What are you doing?”

His tongue sticks out of the corner of his mouth in concentration as he carefully ties a knot, having only taught him how to even tie a knot just last week. He finishes, smiling at his work before bringing his mouth down and biting off the extra ends of the strings. I stare at the thin white string around my finger, mouth agape.

“Now you have a ring!” He says proudly, grinning up at me. “Now I just need to get one and then have a party and we can be married!”

“But- Your yoyo…”

He shrugs. “I can get another yoyo, but I can’t get another you. I just have this you and if we’re married you said I can have you for the rest of my life; and I definitely want that.”

I feel my lip tremble and I quickly grab him into a hug before he sees the tear fall down my cheek. Never before has anyone said anything close to his loving words to me. This wonderful man that makes me smile and feel like I’m actually worth something wants to be with me just as much as I want to be with him.

“Phil… It’s past the time I should say this, but…” I’ve been thinking it for a while now but have been too scared; frightened that Phil would turn out like all the rest and leave me broken again. I realize now that there’s no reason for doubt. “I love you.”

“That means you care about me, right?”

“Very much.”

He hugs me back, ears twitching and tickling me head. “Then I love you, too.”

My smile is so wide my cheeks hurt. We need each other, care for each other and love each other. There’s no better reason to get married than that.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan comes across an abandoned cat in an alleyway and takes it back home in hopes of companionship. When he wakes up the next day to a man with cat-like ears and tail, his world is turned upside down. Though their relationship is more than both of them bargained for, they soon find they need each other more than anything else.

I jump up onto the edge of the fountain, holding out my arms for balance as I walk alongside Dan on our way home. He said he was going out to pick up some groceries and I tagged along with him even though he said it would start raining. I don’t know why he insists on hiding from the rain under that umbrella thing. I love the rain! It feels and smells really good and I get to jump in the puddles it makes. I even try to catch drops on my tongue, although it’s starting to let up.

“As soon as were home you’re taking a bath.” He reminds me, watching me next to him.

“Why?” I ask, peering under the umbrella at him. “I’m already washed from the rain.”

He sighs, shaking his head. “You need a warm bath and dry clothes, otherwise you’ll get sick.”

Uh oh. I remember when Dan was sick. That doesn’t seem fun at all. “Ok. Do I get bubbles?”

“Yup, that’s one of the things I picked up at the store.”

I feel my tail twitch in excitement under my hoodie, ready to run home now so I can play in the bubbles.

“Hey!”

I look under the umbrella again, but Dan’s attention is directed towards the bushes on the other side of the pavement. The bottom of them shake for a moment, then out pops a cat. It’s a big, white, furry thing with yellow eyes and bushy tail. I haven’t seen another cat in a while.

“Hey, human!”

I stare at it, unsure of what I just heard. Did it just talk? Surely regular cats don’t talk? I mean, I never did, but now I’m human and talk, so…

“Aaw, hey there, little guy!” Dan kneels down and the cat sits as well, licking its paw then rubbing its nose. Dan holds out his hand to it but it just stares, eyes half lidded.

“Dan, did you just hear it like I did?” I ask, jumping down from the fountain and standing next to him.

Dan glances up at me. “Yeah, I heard it meow at me.” He goes back to cooing the cat over and I’m left confused. Can only I understand it? It must be the part-cat thing.

“Human!” The cat meows, or rather says again. “I know you have food. Give me some.”

“That’s rude.” I tell the cat and it finally looks my way, staring me down and huffing.

“And what are you?” It asks, strolling towards us. “You don’t smell like any human I’ve ever smelled.”

“What’s rude, Phil?” Dan asks.

“Um-“

“Anyway, who cares what you are? All I care about is whatever food is in that bag.” The cat comes up to Dan and rubs against his knee, purring and swishing his tail at Dan’s nose, making his giggle. Dan scratches the cat’s head and I suddenly want to scare it away.

I look over to the door to our apartment building, just a few meters away. “Dan, let’s go inside.”

“Hang on, Phil.” Dan tells me, not even looking at me. He’s too busy petting the stupid cat. I don’t like it. It’s rude. It could at least ask for food instead of just telling Dan to give him some. Although, Dan doesn’t know it’s being rude.

Dan scratches under the cat’s chin now, earning more purrs. “Does kitty want some tuna?”

“Oh, yes!” The cat exclaims, “One of my favorites!”

My jaw drops. “Dan, I thought that was my tuna!” It’s one of my favorite treats that Dan lets me eat a lot since it’s not candy or other things he says are bad for me. Also, it’s the first thing Dan ever gave me.

“I can get you more. The cat seems hungry.” Dan reaches into the grocery bag and pulls out my can of tuna, opening it and setting it down on the ground. The cat digs right in, slurping happily as Dan stares at him, eyes all googly and making my tummy feel sick.

I sigh loudly, trying to get Dan to notice that I want to go, but he’s too busy with the stupid cat. Fine. Let him watch the cat eat. I can have fun on my own. I don’t need Dan.

I go back up to the fountain, jumping up onto it and balancing again. I lean over and balance on one leg, arms waving. “Dan, look! I’m on one foot!”

“Cool.” He shouts, not ever breaking away from the cat to look at what I’m doing.

I growl, jumping down from the fountain into a puddle, getting my shoes and bottom of my pants all wet but I need to change anyway. I see another one just a little ways ahead and I make a leap for it. My feet just make it to the puddle, but I lose my balance, my bum hitting the wet ground.

“Dan!” I call over to him.

“Hang on, Phil. Kitty’s almost done then we can go inside.”

The cat looks up at me for a moment, licking its whiskers and smelling my way. “Look at you; all jealous.” It sneers, head cocked, “You know what? I think I do know what you smell like.”

“You’re a noisy one, huh?” Dan laughs, obviously just hearing meowing.

“You smell like a freak.” The cat hisses.

“Woah, there, kitty. It’s ok.” Dan coos.

“Shut up!” I take a step towards the cat.

“Phil, he’s just saying ‘hi’.” Dan gives me a look, “Why are you being mean?”

“You look like a human but smell like a mangy cat.” It jeers, “No wonder your master is ignoring you and treating me.”

I stomp at the cat, foot landing in a puddle and splashing it right in the face. It lets out a screech and skids off, hind legs kicking over the tuna can. Dan stands up abruptly, looking at me eye to eye and I can tell he’s not happy. “What did you do that for?! It was just a cat! I’d think you of all people would have loved its company!”

Dan’s never been mad at me before. Not even when I accidentally break something or wake him up by pouncing on him. “But-“

“Get inside,” he trusts his finger towards the door, “now!”

I trudge inside, head hanging as low as my heart feels.

Once inside he shakes out his umbrella and we make our way to our apartment in silence. Dan closes the door behind us and after taking off my muddy shoes he orders me to go to the bathroom for my bath. I peel off my soaking clothes and throw them in the hamper as Dan runs the water, making sure it’s warm.

“Do I still get bubbles?” I ask sheepishly, not wanting to push my luck but I was really excited to play in the bubbles tonight.

“Not tonight.”

I sigh, wishing I could take a bath by myself so I could put my own bubbles in, but last time Dan let me do it on my own I dumped in half the bottle. He’s tried to get me to learn to take showers but he gets frustrated when I make him come in with me and we end up spending way too much time in there. He never says he’s frustrated during, but he always scolds me after.

Dan just gestures for me to get in the bath so I climb in, bringing my knees up and resting my chin on them. Dan starts washing me up and I zone out, what the cat said before running through my head. I’m not really a freak, am I? I mean… I know I’m the only part-cat person I’ve ever seen, but… that just means I’m different. Special, right? Dan says I’m special to him, so…

“Dan?” I look up at him through the suds on my head, his hands combing shampoo in my hair and around my ears.

“What?” He doesn’t look down at me, still mad.

He pours water over my head to rinse out the shampoo and I wait for him to stop. “Am I a freak?”

Dan pauses, brows knitting together. “Why would you say that?”

I look down at what little bubbles the soap has made, poking at them. “That’s what the cat called me.”

“The cat outside?”

I nod, pouting. “He said I smelled funny and that I was a freak.”

“You could understand it?”

I nod. “And you gave him my treat and was ignoring me.” If I’m so special to Dan I should be all that matters. He doesn’t need another cat around when he has me.

Dan’s hand goes to my chin and makes me look up at him. His eyes are much more loving now, back to the Dan I’m used to. “You should have told me the cat was being mean to you. I didn’t know. I’m sorry.”

I shake my head, knowing he didn’t know so it’s not his fault. I shouldn’t be acting like this; I just got so upset when Dan was mad at me. “I just didn’t want you loving all over that other cat. You have me.”

Dan smiles, “Phil, I’m not about to leave you for some other cat or anything, ok?”

My tail swishes in the water, making little waves. “’Cause I’m special, right?”

Dan laughs, “Very special.”

He sits up on the edge of the tub and leans over, pressing a kiss to my lips. I smile into it and quickly wrap my arms around him, pulling him towards me and making him fall into the tub. He yelps as he splashes down into my lap but I silence him again by continuing our kiss. After a moment I let him go, giving him a mischievous smile. “Might as well join me now.” 

Dan gives me a fake look of annoyance. “Is this going to turn out like our showers?”

I just smile. Playing with Dan in the bath is a lot more fun than bubbles.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan comes across an abandoned cat in an alleyway and takes it back home in hopes of companionship. When he wakes up the next day to a man with cat-like ears and tail, his world is turned upside down. Though their relationship is more than both of them bargained for, they soon find they need each other more than anything else.

“Phil, what are you looking for?” I ask as I’m sitting naked on our bed, watching him shuffle through drawers and make a mess. We were just getting really into things then he jumped up, saying he forgot something. He can be easily distracted sometimes.

“Just hang on, I can find it.” He insists, now opening my wardrobe, “If I told you it wouldn’t be a surprise.”

“True, but I’ve been sitting here five minutes.” I remind him, leaning back on the propped up pillows, lazily stroking myself as I wait for him. He’s got me all riled up and needing him and then he decides to look for something? Why couldn’t he have found it before?

Phil comes out of the wardrobe, scratching his ears. “Ok, I give up. Where’s those weird strips of cloth you hang around your neck sometimes?”

I try to decipher what he’s thinking about. “My scarf?”

“No, that’s the fluffy one.” He dismissed, combing through my drawers again. “Where’s the other thin ones. Black and red.”

“Oh, my ties? They’re on the side hook in my wardrobe.”

He goes back to it and pushes the hangers aside, revealing my old ties from school. He grabs them up and brings them over, sitting in front of me and bringing me into a long, tongue filled kiss. After a moment, he sits down between my legs, smiling. “Give me your hands.” He says, holding up his own like in prayer.

I do so and he takes my red tie and cinches it around my wrists. “Woah, uh, Phil…” I pull my hands back and he looks at me, confused. He’s been trying out a lot of new things lately when it comes to sex and I have no idea where they keep coming from. “What’s all this about?”

“I’m tying you up.” Phil says bluntly.

“Yeah, I see that.” I’m not really comfortable with the idea of being tied up. It reminds me too much of my past relationships; out of control and baring my trust all-too-much in another person. “Why?”

“I thought it would be fun.” Phil shrugs, “And with this one I can blindfold you.” He holds up the black tie.

I gulp, not really sure what to say. I know he’s just trying to make things fun and different between us. It’s not like I don’t trust him, it’s just… I don’t know. There’s still that part of me that’s afraid this will turn out like all my other relationships. I’m scared that I’ll trust him too much and get hurt again.

“If you don’t want to, we don’t have to.” Phil frowns at me.

I sigh, trying to get the words to explain out of my mouth and failing, looking down at my bound hands wearily. Then I see my finger. My middle finger on my left hand that still has a little piece of string on it. Phil put that there knowing full well what it meant and I’ve left it there ever since.

I shouldn’t still be doubting him after all this time. He’s not like the others at all. He cares about me and he’s never guilt-tripped me or forced me into doing anything and I know he never will.

“I’ll try.” I tell him, giving him a smile.

“Ok!” He smiles back, planting another kiss on my lips, “Don’t worry, I won’t make it too tight.”

My hands really aren’t tied that tight, I could slip right out them if I wanted. He grabs the other end of the tie and looks up at the headboard behind me, frowning. “There isn’t anywhere for me to tie it.”

He sounds disappointed, but inside I’m relieved. “I can just keep my hands up over my head, ok?”

“Alright, but you better not move them!” He wags his finger at me as a warning, but his face shows no malice.

He holds up the black tie and tells me to lean my head up so he can put it on but I feel my panic rising again, shaking my head. “C-can we not do that?”

“Ok.” He tosses the tie on the floor and his focus finally comes back to the matter at hand, or rather lap. “You look really good like this.” His hands go to my thighs, rubbing up and down them. “I always love the faces you pull and the noises you make.”

I feel my face flush, being so laid out in front of him and at his will. His hands keep going lower, thumbs just grazing the hollow of my hips then back away, making me hold back a whimper. He knows I’m already teased enough and ready to go, but I think he’s liking having more control over me too much.

He kneels up on his knees, stroking himself and looking down at me. He’s so fucking hot when his mouth hangs open like that and I just imagine all the thoughts going through his head, what he wants to do to me and how it’s going to feel. “Phil, hurry up,” I plead, trying not to reach down and tug him towards me, “I need you.”

He smiles, leaning down and pressing in, the tip stretching me and feeling fucking amazing. He nips at my chest and neck, easing his way in and making a moan slip out right near his ear. Once fully in I can’t help but buck up into him, wanting him to move right now. I had to wait five whole minutes for him; I do not have any more patience now. “Come on, kitty, please.”

He growls against my neck, biting down a little harder as he starts to bare down into me, long and hard thrusts making swears come tumbling out of my mouth. The nickname always gets him going. His lips comes to mine, practically tongue fucking my mouth as his fingers link with mine, pinning my hands down for sure but I don’t feel as helpless as I thought I would. It’s quite exciting, actually, Phil tapping into that animal side of him a little more than usual. I may have been the one to bring him home and claim him as my own, but we both know who owns who in the bedroom.

I let out a quiet yelp as his tail whips at my knee, tickling. He lets up and looks down at me, concerned. “You ok?”

“Yeah,” I laugh it off, panting a little, “Your tail tickled me.”

Phil looks back at his tail for a second before a grin spreads across his face. He grabs his tail gently and brings it to his side, brushing it against my leg again and I jerk. He laughs, “Like that?” Like I said before; easily distracted.

“Yes, silly, now come on.” I try to thrust into him, wanting him desperately to move. I’m so close I can feel it; just a little while longer.

He leans down, pulling on his tail a little more and making it trail down my thigh. It tickles like hell, making me hold back giggles, but it’s also teasing. It’s so soft and lightly brushing along all my most sensitive spots. “P-phil, please.”

He smirks, finger tracing down my cock and making me breathe out a moan. “Would this tickle?”

“No, Phil, Jesus-“ I know if he gets his tail anywhere near there it’ll drive me insane. I’m so fucking close and his fuzzy tail is such a sensitive touch.

He brings the tip of tail to the tip of my cock and I can’t help but let out a squeal as he strokes it all the way down to my base. It’s so god damn ticklish and stimulating I can’t stand it. I buck wildly, crying out and groaning as he does it again. Before I know it my hands come up and cover my dick, blocking him from tickling me anymore. “Phil, I can’t. It’s too much.” I breathe, my hands starting to stroke myself, needing to come.

He lets go of his tail and grabs the end of the tie, pinning my hands back up over my head and leaving me to rut my cock against his stomach, needing any kind of friction I can get.

“I told you not to move your hands, Dan.” He growls, eyes piercing into mine as he pulls out and thrusts back in roughly, a choking moan escaping me. “You’re lucky my tail can’t reach up here.” His fingers pinch at my nipples and I can’t take it anymore, my head leaning back into the pillow as I’m pounded into by Phil, my senses soaring and ready to burst.

“Phil, I-“ He thrusts into me deep, cutting off what I was trying to say with a moan, “Phil, I’m close.”

He presses into me more and I really want to hold him as I cum, tugging at my restraints. The knot in my stomach is practically pulsing and I pull hard against Phil’s grip and to my surprise he lets go, my arms going around his neck as I finally feel myself climax, spurting warm cum between us.

His arms wrap under me and I’m rode out of my high as he makes his own last thrusts until he cums deep inside me. I shuffle my wrists in the tie until it’s loosened, freeing my hands and holding Phil properly as we catch our breath.

He leans up on his elbows, pecking my nose and smiling. “Was that ok? Being tied up like that?”

“Yeah, but I don’t know about doing it too much.”

“That’s ok.” He shrugs, “I have plenty of other ideas to try.”

“Ok, Phil, where have you been getting all of these ideas from?” I don’t really think he’d think up all these things on his own, so he must be getting them from somewhere.

“Sometimes at night I’ll watch TV and they have a whole channel with nothing but people mating.”

My mouth drops open, having no idea Phil had been watching some late night cable porn. When did he find this?! The thought of myself sleeping while Phil was just sitting there watching porn right out in our living room is both hot and unnerving. I have no idea what else he’s been learning. “Phil, you should have told me you’ve been watching that stuff.”

“Did you not know about it?” he cocks his head, “Next time it’s on, I’ll show you!”

“No, Phil, I’m good.”

“Why? If you watch it with me you can point out more stuff you want to try.”

I bite my lip. “Ok, maybe I will.”


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan comes across an abandoned cat in an alleyway and takes it back home in hopes of companionship. When he wakes up the next day to a man with cat-like ears and tail, his world is turned upside down. Though their relationship is more than both of them bargained for, they soon find they need each other more than anything else.

Phil rolls off me and snuggles up under my arm, squeezing me tightly as we catch our breath. This is the third time today that we’ve had sex, not that I’m complaining or resisting much. Phil’s been jumping on me a lot more recently. I don’t really know why; it just started suddenly. It makes me wonder what’s gotten into him. He’s not in heat or something, is he? Would he go through that? I don’t really know, but it’s honestly wearing me out.

“Phil?” I look down at him as his ears tickle my chest, twitching at his name.

“Hmm?”

“What’s been up with you and all the extra sex lately?” I ask, “Not that I don’t mind it…”

He sits up, looking down at me as I pull the sheets over myself since his warmth has left me. “Do you remember that lion thing I watched?”

“Yeah.” There was a BBC World special on lions the other night and Phil had been glued to it just like any other show about big cats. They talked all about their lives and how they grew up and it took me physically pulling him away from it and promising to record the rest for him to come to dinner that night. He’s been talking about it ever since, how the lions were so big and strong and the cubs were so cute and playful.

“Well, on it they showed two lion mates and their cubs playing with each other. They looked really happy.” Phil plays with the sheets next to my leg, tail slowly swaying behind him.

I remember that Phil got especially doe-eyed at the cub part, the two lions watching as their cubs nipped at each other playfully. I laugh, “Is that what you’ve been doing? Imitating the cubs?” Pouncing on me at all hours of the day and tumbling under the duvet. It’s very much like a lion cub.

“No, I was just thinking…” Phil bites his lip, face turning a cherry red. “I want to make a family with you.”

I can almost hear my heart beating in my chest, his words hanging in the air and making me feel… nervous. Why am I nervous about such a thing? “Phil…”

“I just thought it’d be nice if we could have kittens.” He says, looking at me again and his expression makes my breath catch. He’s so serious about this but he’d never actually brought up the subject. “I want to have kittens with you like a proper family and raise them and play with them and do all of the things couples and parents do.”

I hold back the tears that threaten to fall and sit up, taking his fumbling hands in mine. “Phil… we can’t make kittens…”

He stares at me, confused and hurt. “Why? Do you… Do you not want to?”

“No, it’s because I’m a boy. Only girls can get pregnant and have babies. I’m sorry…”

Phil opens his mouth to say something, then shuts it tight, bottom lip trembling. “So, we can’t have a family?”

His voice cracks at the end and I pull him to me, feeling his shoulders shake in my arms, ears flattening. He just wants to have a family with me. The thought simultaneously makes me feel adored and scared. Could I even handle a baby? I could barely keep myself together and now I’m also looking after Phil…

But Phil is talking about kittens, not a human baby. His mindset is still very much feline, so I don’t think he could handle a human baby either. A kitten would be easy to raise, honestly. I thought that was what I was getting myself into when I took in Phil; just a cat to have around the house and keep me company; but to Phil this is so much more. It would be an actual child to him, not a pet like to me. It’s a huge step in our relationship.

Is that why I’m feeling this anxiety about the whole thing? Phil and I are already way far ahead in our relationship than any of my others and it’s a lot to get used to. When you’ve been in a bunch of shit relationships and then finally find a good one you spend all your time wondering if it’s all a dream or being paranoid that it’ll turn sour at any moment. If we decided we wanted to start a family it’d be the ultimate sign that I was sure he’s going to be around for a very long time. Am I ready to accept that?

Phil pulls away from me, touching my face. “I’m sorry, Dan.” he sniffs, “I didn’t know that part about being a girl and now I feel stupid.”

“No, shush. It’s not your fault you still have things to learn.” I kiss his head, breathing in his scent and lingering in it. I do love him; and I know he loves me. The other guys… they didn’t love me. They said it, but looking back to them their words sound and feel so empty compared to every time Phil says it. He doesn’t even need to say it. Just the way he says my name and his eyes light up when he smiles at me… There’s nothing else like it. “Phil… Are you really serious about wanting a family with me?”

“Of course.” He nods, thumb brushing against my cheek. “I love you and want to experience everything with you; including children.”

I smile, mouth trembling as I fight back more tears, but of the happier sort. “Well, there are other couples out there that can’t have children like us.”

“There are?” His eyes widen.

“Mhm, and you know what they do?”

“What?”

“They adopt children that don’t have homes.” I explain, “It’s much like how you can adopt a cat.”

His eyes widen more, ears perking back up. “So- So, we could just adopt a kitten? We could make a family?”

“If you want, we can look into it.” It’s a big deal for both of us. Phil will see the kitten as his child; raising it and teaching it all the things cats need to learn. It’ll be a big responsibility and he’ll have to grow up a bit so he can teach it right. As for me, I’ll have to finally realize that Phil is staying with me no matter what my past keeps telling me and I’ll have to try to take raising the kitten seriously. For him. “I love you, Phil. I would love to have a family with you.”

“I love you, too.” He says, nuzzling his nose to mine, “I can’t wait to have a proper family with you.”

~

We get to the Humane Society and Phil seems even more nervous than I am. He’d been bouncing up and down all the way here, but as soon as we entered the door he tensed up, scrunching up close to me. I touch his hand that’s tightly gripping my jacket sleeve. “Are you ok?”

He shakes his head, looking at the people working here and the few animals that are freely roaming about the place. “It’s just like that cat. They don’t like me. I can feel it in the air.”

“I’m sure you’re just nervous,” I tell him, “who wouldn’t like you?”

Phil’s mouth twitches at a smile, but he’s still clinging to me. “It also reminds me of when I was little.”

“This place is different.” My hand squeezes his, “All of the animals here were rescued from bad people or taken off the streets by the people here. The people that work here are very nice.”

His eyes finally turn to me. “Like how you rescued me?”

“Yes.” I pull his hand off my sleeve, holding it properly, “Now, we may be able to give a nice kitty a home. Just like how I gave you a new home.”

“You don’t know how much this means to me, Dan.” He says, shoulders finally relaxing now that he’s focusing back on the reason why we’re here. “It makes me beyond happy that you’re doing this with me.”

I smile, leaning forward and resting my forehead to his a moment, noses touching. “Let’s go get a kitten.”

We head over to the counter, telling the lady there that we’d like to adopt a kitten and she has us fill out forms before we enter the main housing area. We only take a few steps inside before everything turns hectic. Every time we get close to a cage the cats inside either move to the back of the cage or swipe out at us, hissing. The lady leading us through the area is baffled; saying they were all acting normal just a few minutes before.

I turn to Phil and see him half hiding behind me, cringing away from the cages and eyes watering. I squeeze his hand again, leaning close so I can whisper without the guide hearing. “What are they saying?”

“That I’m a freak; that I don’t belong here…” He mumbles.

I let out a sigh, telling the guide never mind as I pull Phil back towards the entrance. “We’ll try somewhere else, ok?”

Phil just nods and we end up trying a pet store next, just a little ways down the street. It’s the same story; the cats and even other animals this time all bearing their claws and teeth at Phil and I end up being pulled out of there by Phil this time, bursting into tears as soon as were outside. “I can’t do it anymore, Dan. It’s no use. I am a freak.” He covers his face with his hoodie sleeves and I pull him into a hug, letting him get out his crying.

How could they all be so mean to him? Just because he’s different doesn’t mean they should shun him like that and call him names! I suppose animals and humans really are alike, seeing as I know it’d probably be the same reaction from another person if they found out what Phil was. They’d point and laugh and hurt him. It’s why he always has to wear a stupid hoodie whenever we go out, even if it’s warm.

Phil has nothing but good intentions in wanting a kitten but all these judgmental cats are tearing his dream away from him. I can’t let him give up just yet. He wants a kitten with me so badly; and I want one as well. “One more place, ok?” I scratch at his ears through his hoodie.

“Dan…” he sniffs.

“Just one more. I want to have a kitten with you.” I smile.

He sighs, nodding. “Just one more.”

We head to another Humane Society on the other side of town, a smaller place than the others. We fill out papers again and head to the back, most of the cats opting to slink to the back of their cages this time, low growling here and there but otherwise quiet. Phil doesn’t really bother to look around, just lets his head hang as I pull him along.

I’m about to give up as well, turning and rubbing his back, when through the humming silence I hear a high pitched meow.

Phil’s head springs up, looking down the way to a cage at the end. The meow breaks through the tension again and Phil lets go of my hand, walking towards the cage. I follow him, his pace cautious as he kneels in front of a cage housing a black and brown stripped kitten, eyes yellow and widely staring up at Phil. It’s the only one in its small cage, which is odd seeing as the rest of the kittens around were housed with their mother and siblings.

Phil reaches down and holds his hand up to the cage, the kitten sniffing at it.

“What did it say to you?” I ask quietly, the staff member showing us around not really paying attention but I still have to be careful.

“He asked if he could smell me.” Phil says, the kitten’s nose still nuzzling over his fingers, “It seems he can’t smell as well as the others but heard what they were saying.”

I turn to look at the worker, down the ways petting an older cat. “Excuse me? Is there a reason why this kitten is on its own?”

“Yeah, it kept getting bullied by the others.” The man shouts down to me, “It was born without a proper sense of smell and I guess the others picked up on it and didn’t like it.”

So I guess he was the runt of his litter; born differently and rejected by his own family. I look back to Phil to find him and the kitten staring at each other, having a silent moment between them. I let them stay that way until the kitten lets out a small meow, making Phil turn towards me. “He wants to see since he can’t really smell that I’m different.” He says, pointing to his hood.

The worker has turned back the cat he was petting again so I nod at Phil, giving him the ok. He leans closer to the cage, turning his head and pulling away his hood just enough to let his ear pop out a moment. The kitten lets out a long string of meows and chirps, Phil putting his hood back to listen. Once the cat is done, Phil smiles, letting out a sad chuckle. “Yeah, things can be unfair sometimes, but you’ll find someone to take care of you that won’t mind that you’re different because they’ll love you anyway.”

I smile at Phil; knowing he’s not just talking about the kitten.

“Does it bother you that I’m different?” He asks the kitten. He meows up at him, then turns towards me. “No, he’s actually the reason why I’m like this, but I don’t mind because I love him and he loves me.”

“Phil, can he understand me, too?”

Phil nods. I bring my own hand up to the cage, sticking a finger through to let the kitten smell it. “I don’t care that Phil is different physically than other people because I fell in love with him for what’s on the inside. He makes me happy.”

Phil scratches at the kitten’s head with his fingers, the tiny thing purring loudly. “You know, you could come home with us. We can be misfits together. Would you like that?”

The kitten lets out the loudest meow yet, leaning up on the cage with its front paws and making us both laugh with excitement. He squeaks and chatters and Phil giggles, turning to me. “He says ‘Yes! Please! Of course!’”

“Alright then, we’ll have to leave you for a moment while we get everything arranged, then you can come home with us.” I tell the kitten, it rubbing up into my hand.

“Oh, I forgot!” Phil says after standing up with me, getting ready to go. “What’s your name?” The kitten lets out a small chirp and Phil laughs. “That’s perfect!”

“So, what is it?” I ask.

“Leo.”

Leo. A strong name for a kitten that’s already been through a lot. It does seem to fit rather handsomely. Phil sneaks a kiss to my cheek as we fill out the forms we need to adopt Leo, and I can’t help but be a little bouncy with excitement myself. This means so many things. Phil and I will be raising a kitten together; treating it as a child. I never in a million years thought I’d have a family like this, but as we head home with Leo in Phil’s arms, I already feel a sense of wholeness flowing over me.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan comes across an abandoned cat in an alleyway and takes it back home in hopes of companionship. When he wakes up the next day to a man with cat-like ears and tail, his world is turned upside down. Though their relationship is more than both of them bargained for, they soon find they need each other more than anything else.

“Alright, I need you to keep this a secret for me, ok?”

“Why? Didn’t you say a birthday party is a good thing?” Leo asks, rolling over onto his back.

“Yeah, but it’s supposed to be that much better when it’s a surprise.” I explain, scratching at his tummy, “So if Dan asks, we’re going to watch a movie tomorrow while he’s gone.”

“But we’re not.” He says, confused. “You said you were going out.”

“I know, but we’ll tell Dan we’re going to watch a movie instead so he’ll really think that’s what we’re doing. Then once he’s gone I’ll go out and get stuff for the party and get it all ready before Dan gets home.”

“But…” Leo flips back over onto his stomach, resting his chin on my leg. “This is so confusing. Human stuff is confusing.”

“I know. It took me a while to get used to it myself.” I admit.

It’s been about a month since we brought Leo home and I couldn’t be happier. It only took him a few days to get use to things around here and he’s so energetic even I have a hard time keeping up. I already love him, though. He’s the best kitten ever and I try to teach him everything I know. He’s a quick learner when it comes to cat things, but human concepts go right over his head.

Dan’s been trying hard to take care of Leo, too. Leo’s grown more attached to me than Dan, me being the part cat one and all, but he still likes Dan and plays with him. I have to translate stuff from Leo to Dan, but sometimes Dan can tell what Leo’s trying to say just by how he sounds. I think Dan loves him, too.

“I still don’t get why this birthday thing is important.” Leo jumps down to the floor, kneading at the carpet. “I don’t know when I was born.”

“I don’t either, but it’s a big deal to humans so I want to make it special for Dan.” I’d seen a birthday party on TV and asked Dan about it and he’d mentioned his birthday was coming up. He said he didn’t have plans, but it seemed like so much fun on TV I want Dan to have fun, too. “Just help me out with this and I’ll sneak you back some catnip, ok?” There’s some that grows just outside of our apartment building and Leo goes crazy for it. I used to, too, but it tastes icky to me now.

“Oh! Ok!” Leo purrs, rubbing against my leg.

“That’s a good boy.” I laugh, picking him up and rubbing my nose on his. I hope I can do this for Dan. I’ve never gone out on my own before, but I have to if I’m going to make this the best birthday ever.

~

As soon as Dan left for work I put on the TV for Leo and made sure he had plenty of food before I left. At least I know my way to the store on my own from all the times I’ve been there with Dan. It just feels different going on my own. I have to pay attention to where I’m going and not get distracted.

I pass a café and a dog sitting outside it barks at me, making me jump. I quickly walk past it, sticking my tongue out at it before getting back to business. Once I’m at the store I head inside, looking around the bustling place and all the aisles they have. Which one has cakes? I wish I could read the signs because I know they tell you where to go.

I start strolling past the shelves, peer down each of them and trying to figure out which has what. I get to about the middle of the store when I see bags of candy, making me stop and look over them. I haven’t had candy in a while… They even have those little fish gummies I like! I shake my head, telling myself to get back to business. Dan might like candy on his cake though. Maybe I should get him a bag? I grab a bag of chocolates and hesitate only a second before grabbing the fish gummies for myself. I’ll need a snack for the way home anyway.

I search down more aisles but don’t see cakes anywhere. How can they be that hard to find? They’re not a rare thing, are they? I thought everyone was supposed to have cake on their birthday? I retrace my steps, going back to previous aisles but still not seeing anything that looks like a cake. Do they not sell cakes here? Where else am I supposed to go to get one? I don’t know any other food stores!

As I round yet another corner I bump into a basket, hurting my tail that’s wrapped around my tummy and making me yelp.

“Oh, I’m so sorry! Are you hurt?” The lady holding the basket asks, covering her mouth.

“I’m ok…” I rub my tail through my hoodie, “Um, do you happen to know where the cakes are? I can’t find them anywhere.”

“Cakes?” She looks at the signs above us, “They should have been in the aisle you just came out of.”

“Really?” I look down the aisle again but don’t see them anywhere. I walk down the way, eyes scanning over the shelves and not seeing anything.

“They’re right here.” The lady points to a box on the shelf and I see a picture of a cake on it.

“Cakes come in boxes?” Wouldn’t they get squished or have the outside stick to the inside of the box?

“You have to make the cake. You’ve never made one before?” The lady looks at me oddly and I shake my head. “Well you’ll need this cake mix and a few other ingredients.”

“Ingredients?” This sounds a lot more complicated than I thought. I thought cakes just came as I saw them on TV. I didn’t know I’d have to make it. I don’t know if I’ll be able to.

“Well, there’s eggs, oil, whatever other decorations you want on it like frosting and candles.”

“Oh! You blow out the birthday candles, right?” I ask, hugging my bags of candy to my chest, “I know that part!”

The lady gives me another odd look. “You’ve never had your own birthday cake?”

“No, I never really knew about birthdays until I saw one on TV and asked Dan about it.” I explain, “That’s why I’m getting a cake! It’s Dan’s birthday today!” I slump a bit, looking at the cake box. “But I don’t think I’ll know how to make a cake. I don’t cook.”

The lady looks me over and I start to think I’ve said something wrong. Were you not supposed to tell people about other people’s birthdays? Maybe it’s a private thing?

“Well, dear, you can always buy a premade cake over at the bakery counter.” The lady points to the end of the store. “Want me to show you?”

“Yes please!” I start to follow her towards the bakery counter, making sure I don’t get distracted and trail off without her. She’s being so helpful to me! I hope I didn’t weird her out or anything… I need to watch what I say to other people, I guess. I’m still not so use to talking to people other than Dan.

We reach the bakery and I see that they indeed have cakes. There are so many to choose from I don’t know where to start. “I’m not sure which one to pick.”

“Do you know Dan’s favourite flavour?” The lady asks.

“Hmm.” I look down at the chocolates in my arms, “He like’s chocolate.”

The lady points over to a brown cake with little frosted flowers on top. “That one would be good if you’re having a big party for him.”

“I don’t think it’ll be that big it’s just me, Dan and Leo.”

The lady folds her arms, basket resting on her hip. “Then that may be too big for just three people.”

“Leo’s a kitten.” I correct her.

“Oh.” The lady leans down to look at the cakes again. “Then it’ll just be two people.”

“I’m sure Leo will want to try some, too.” I laugh, thinking of frosting sticking to his whiskers, “He hasn’t tried cake yet.”

“Well, cats can’t have cake,” the lady straightens back up and I look at her blankly, “It’ll make them sick. Especially the chocolate one.”

“Leo can’t have cake?” I pout. That’s not fair to Leo! How else is he going to celebrate Dan’s birthday with us?

The lady gives me another odd look, then hesitantly touches my arm. “Sweetheart… I know it’s none of my business, but… are you ok at home?”

“Of course.” I say, “Why?”

“You just seem to not know a lot of things that you really should… I thought maybe… you weren’t treated well? I’m sorry if I’m being rude.” The lady seems embarrassed but I know she means well.

“Well, the family I was in before was ok but then they abandoned me.” I shrug, a shocked look coming over the lady now, “But then I found Dan and he took me in and now I’m very happy!”

“Oh, dear, I’m so sorry…” The lady whispers, “Does this Dan treat you well?”

“Yes! He teaches me so many things I didn’t know before and gets me treats and lets me do whatever I want as long as I don’t get in trouble.” I laugh. I lean in close to her, whispering. “That’s why I’m surprising him for his birthday to thank him.”

She rests a hand over her heart, breathing out a sigh of relief. “Well, that’s good that you’ve found someone who treats you well.”

“Mhm.” I nod, looking back at the cakes. I spot a small one in the back, white with a face on it and a bow. “Haha! That one is cute.” I point.

The lady smiles at it. “Oh, I know that one. It’s Hello Kitty. My daughter would love that.”

Kitty? I guess it does look like a cat it an odd way. “Do you think Dan would like it?”

“I’m not too sure if he would. I don’t know him.”

“Hmmm.” If it’s supposed to be a cat, why wouldn’t Dan like it? Besides, I want to show Leo the silly Kitty cake. “I think I’ll get that one.”

The lady helps me call someone over from the bakery and they get the cake out from behind the glass, putting it in a box and handing it to me. I grin down at it, thankful I was able to finally find a cake. “Now all I need is decorations for the cake and the house. I pull my allowance out of my pocket looking from the numbers on the candy and the cake to the pounds in my hand. “Do you think I have enough? I’m still new to money.”

She looks over my money and nods. “I think you should have enough.”

“Great!” We head back to the cake-in-boxes aisle and I pick out a box of candles. I start to grab a bunch of bottles of little candy dots but the lady says they probably won’t stay on this kind of cake so I put them back. “Um… now I need house decorations.”

“What kind do you want?”

“Um, well the only ones I know of are the long pieces of paper people hang up and those big floaty things.” I forget what Dan called them.

The lady puts a finger on her chin. “I think you’re talking about streamers and balloons.”

“That sounds right.”

We start to head to the other side of the store, past all the food and more into the household items and clothing area. I resist the urge to run down the toys aisles. As we get near the flowers I realize something. “I haven’t asked your name yet. I’m Phil.”

“Megan.” She glances back at me.

“Thank you very much for helping me.” I feel like I’m being a bother; she’s going so far out of her way for me.

“No problem.” She smiles, “You just seem so lost about everything, how could I not help you?”

“You’re really nice. Like Dan.” I giggle.

She giggles, too, before turning just past the flowers and going towards small shelves of folded papers, lots of pictures and words on them. I have no idea what they all say, but there are so many, the aisle a rainbow of colors.

“Here’s some streamers.” She says, pointing to an assortment of colored rolls. I look at the cake and pick out a red to match the bow on it since I don’t see a white, then also grab a black because I know that’s Dan’s favorite color. “Now we can get him a balloon.”

Megan shows me a shelf with a bunch of pictures on it and I see one that looks just like the cake and has writing on it. I point to the letters. “What’s this say?”

“It says ‘Happy Birthday’.” She informs me. “You can’t read either?”

She sounds so worried; I don’t understand why. “Dan hasn’t taught me yet but he reads me books sometimes and I ask him about some words.” I turn back to the picture. “I think this one is perfect.”

We get a person that works at the store to get me a balloon out of the box and I frown, it looking flat and crinkly, but Megan tells me to wait and watch. The person takes the balloon and hooks it up to a big metal thing and turns it on, the noise loud but I don’t mind as I watch it steadily fill up the balloon. How does it do that?!

The lady ties a string around the bottom and a star toy at the bottom of that then hands me the string. I take it, thinking the balloon is light since it’s floating, but the star makes it thunk to the ground. Megan explains that the star at the bottom makes it so that the balloon won’t float away. “That’s very smart.” I tell her.

I double check all my stuff and I tell Megan I’m ready to go. We go to the self check out and she buys her things first, showing me how to scan the items. I see Dan do it all the time but I never really knew how it worked. I guess the little red light needs to hit the little black lines on the item and it beeps and you’re all good. Human things really are like magic sometimes.

She helps me scan all my things and shows me where to put my money in and everything, it saying I have just enough for everything. I put my things in a bag, careful with the cake so it doesn’t bump around in the box.

I thank her again and offer her some of my fishy gummies that I’ve already opened and she takes one, wishing me luck with Dan’s birthday preparations. As I head home I can’t help but have a little spring in my step. Things are going great so far! I got everything I need and am ready to make Dan’s birthday party! I hope I run into Megan again sometime; she was so nice!

I get back to the apartment, grabbing a few leaves of catnip from outside the door before going in, and hurry inside. Leo’s stretched out in front of the window in a patch of sun, purring slightly. “Leo, I’m back!”

Leo looks up at me lazily, still in a sleepy daze. “Did you get everything?”

“Mhm.” I hold up my bag and his catnip, Leo getting up and coming over to me. I scratch under his chin as I give him the leaves, him rubbing all over them as he eats them. “Now I have to decorate.”

“Can I help?” Leo asks, a bit of leaf sticking out of his mouth. “Please? Please?”

“I don’t think you can…” I know I have to hang the streamers up high and Leo can’t help with that. I go to the kitchen and take the cake out of the box, carefully putting it on a plate. It looks so much smaller on the big plate. Is it too small? I know, I’ll just put the chocolates around it and it’ll fill up the plate more! I open the bag of chocolates and pour them around the cake, some of them tumbling onto the counter before I can catch them.

Once that’s done I open the box of candles and stick them all around the cake. They’d look kind of weird having them sticking out of the cat’s face. I set the cake aside, pulling the streamers out of the bag. I search the drawers until I find a roll of tape, taking it into the living room. I’ve seen Dan use this stuff to stick things together before, so it should be able to stick the streamers to the walls with it.

I open the package of red streamers, unfurling it and sizing it up to the wall. I think I can reach it up above the couch if I climb up onto the back of it. I step up onto the couch and Leo follows, jumping up next to me. “Oooo, that looks fun! Can I play?”

“No, it’s for the decorations.” I groan, trying to stretch up high on the wall. I use one hand to hold the end of the streamer up where I want it and the other to get some tape off the roll. It’s harder than I thought. I get some pulled away from the roll but it gets stuck on my finger. Try as I might to shake it off all it does is pull more off.

Leo jumps for the roll of tape, claws extended and snatches it up, pulling it to the floor. “Leo, no!” I reach out to him and forget I’m balancing on top of the sofa, my arms flailing as I fall down, hitting the hard floor with a thud. I try to grab the tape from him put it’s stuck on his head, him having rubbed on it.

“Leo, stop!” I shout, but Leo eyes are glued to the roll of streamer rolling away that I dropped. I try to grab him but he’s too fast, pouncing at the roll and making it keep moving, the roll of tape still stuck on his head bouncing behind him. I quickly get up and chase after him, telling him he needs to stop so I can get the decorating done but he just laughs, thinking it’s a game.

How has this gone so wrong? I thought I could make everything perfect for Dan’s birthday but I can’t even get the decorations done with Leo bugging me! I shouldn’t have given him that catnip; now he’s all riled up.

It takes forever to finally catch Leo and by the time I have him in my grasp the living room is a mess. There’s streamer tangled everywhere and he’s even managed to knock over some books that were on the coffee table. Thank goodness I was able to keep him away from the balloon, still floating over in the corner where I left it. I hold him up and look into his eyes, putting on my sternest face. “Leo, look at the mess you’ve made!”

He just bats at the bit of streamer hanging off of my head. He doesn’t understand what he did, I guess. Still, how am I going to get this all cleaned up and ready before-

“Phil?” I turn around to see Dan staring down at me, keys in hand and confused look on his face. “What happened here?”

I set Leo down on my lap but he jumps off, paw trying to get off the tape sticking down his ear. “I’m sorry.” I say, trying to not let myself start to get upset but I can feel my voice cracking. “I tried to make you a party but Leo made a mess.”

Dan looks around at the red mess around the room, long lines wrapped around chair legs and some pieces shredded on top of the sofa. We really did make a mess. Dan trusted me alone with Leo and I ended up letting him run amuck all over the place. I hang my head, peeling tape off my fingers.

Dan kneels down beside me, moving the piece of streamer off my head. “It’s ok.” I look up at him and he’s smiling. How can he be smiling when I messed up the apartment so badly? “I know you meant well; and I can honestly say it was a surprise.”

I sniff, “You’re not mad at me?”

“No” He laughs. “Let’s get this place picked up.”

“I got you cake, too.” I tell him as we stand up.

“When did you get cake?” he asks, cocking his head.

“Um, promise you still won’t be mad?” I give him my best charm look.

“Um, I guess?”

“I went out while you were gone all by myself and bought you a cake and these streamers with my allowance.”

Dan looks angry at first, obviously wishing I hadn’t gone out by myself, but then reaches up and scratches at my ears. “You didn’t have to spend your money on me, silly.”

“I wanted to.” I shrug, “It’s your birthday.”

Dan just smiles and we start cleaning up, Dan helping me hang the streamers properly and getting the cake ready. I get the tape off of Leo, with much fussing, and tell him he doesn’t get to play with the laser pointer for a while since he was bad. He just stalks off to the bedroom for a nap.

Dan laughs at my cake choice, saying it’s very cute, and pops a ball of chocolate into his mouth. After showing him the balloon I got him, also a good choice it turns out, I set the cake in front of him at the table. Once Dan lights the candles, not letting me do that part myself, he quickly blows them out and we start to dig in.

All in all I think today turned out well. I may not have been able to get Dan’s party things all on my own, needing help after all, but I’m still proud of myself for trying my best. Maybe if I start going out by myself more often I’ll get better at it. With Dan’s permission next time.

I’m just glad I was able to make Dan happy. I love him so much and throwing him a party is my way of showing it. After Dan takes another bite of cake I lean in and give him a kiss on the cheek, smearing frosting on it. “Happy birthday, Dan.”


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan comes across an abandoned cat in an alleyway and takes it back home in hopes of companionship. When he wakes up the next day to a man with cat-like ears and tail, his world is turned upside down. Though their relationship is more than both of them bargained for, they soon find they need each other more than anything else.

I just get done scrolling through a bit of Tumblr when I hear Phil stomping down the hall, a second later bursting through the door. “Dan!”

“Yes?”

He jumps onto the bed, landing across my lap. “Let’s have a date night!”

“A date night?” I haven’t been out on a date in ages. Last one I went on was when Cody and I had first started dating. “I think your usual hoodie would be a bit out of place at a restaurant.”

“No, we can just do one at home.” He reaches into his big hoodie pocket, producing a magazine, pages folded over to keep his place. He shows me an article about ‘How to Make the Perfect Date Night’, a couple staring doe-eyed at each other at the top. “I couldn’t make out all the words but I got the gist of it. Can we please?”

I skim through the article, it listing off the typical date-like things like a candlelit dinner or going to a movie. “Phil, we do a lot of these things every night anyway. It wouldn’t be any different.”

“It will be.” He smiles, moving to lay properly on me, resting his head on my stomach. “We can make a nice dinner together and have candles and watch a romantic movie and then…” His smile turns mischievous, his hips wiggling back and forth along with his tail.

I laugh. “Ah, so that’s your real motive.” I sit up and grab his face, pulling him up to meet me in a kiss. “We can do that anyways, you know?”

He giggles, ears flicking. “I know, but wouldn’t it be nice to have a whole night to set the mood?”

It would be nice, honestly. I suppose we’re allowed to pamper ourselves once in a while even if it’s a little silly to do so. A date night sounds like a relaxing idea.

Leo comes into the room, trotting over and jumping onto the bed and stepping onto Phil’s back, sitting down on it and meowing.

“What’s up?” I ask him.

“He was just wondering what we were doing in here.” Phil tells me, trying to crane his neck around to see Leo, kneading into his back. He rolls over and makes Leo hop off, grabbing him and lifting him onto his chest before he lies his head back down on my legs. “Listen Leo, Dan and I want a date night so you need to be especially good later, ok?”

Leo meows, lightly batting a paw on Phil’s nose.

“I know you’re usually good, but tonight being good means leaving us alone for a while, ok?”

Leo purrs, rubbing up against Phil’s chin. I suppose that means he’s agreed to be good for us. I reach to scratch his head between his ears, “Thanks, Leo.”

Leo chirps at me once before leaping off the bed, going back to whatever he was doing. “I suppose this means I should get properly dressed and go grab some groceries.”

Phil sits up, “Need me to come with?”

“No, I’ve got it.” I tell him, “You stay here and maybe pick out a movie for later and stuff, ok?”

Phil gives me a peck on the cheek before leaving our room, letting me get ready. I quickly get dressed and sort out my hair before heading out to the store.

~

On the way home my phone rings, seeing that it’s Phil and picking it up. I’d bought him a cheap phone and taught him how to call me using speed dial in case he ever needed to. With all the trouble he gets in I need some way of communication with him when we’re apart. “Hey, Phil. Everything alright?”

“Hello?” I can barely hear him on the other line.

I sigh, stopping at the corner. “Phil,” I say a little louder, “you have the phone upside down again.”

I hear rustling and then his voice again, louder now. “Sorry, I forgot.”

“What’s up?”

“Um… Well, I was trying to open a can of food for Leo and I cut my finger.”

“Did you wash it and put a plaster on it?” I ask.

“Yeah, but it hurts.” I can hear the pout in his voice and I hold back a chuckle. He’s too cute sometimes.

“I’m almost home now and I’ll kiss it better, ok? Why were you getting Leo food anyway? It’s not lunchtime yet.”

“He kept saying he was hungry and wouldn’t leave me alone to pick out a movie.”

“Alright, well I’ll see you in a bit.” I hang up and continue my way home, getting there and bringing the groceries to the kitchen. I see the aftermath of Phil’s mishap on the counter, food can left out and a red tinge to the sharp edge. “Phil?” I call.

Phil comes out of the bathroom, Leo carefully lying on his shoulder. You’d think Leo mistakes Phil for a jungle gym sometimes with how much he likes to climb on him. Phil comes up to me, frowning and holding up his finger, a plaster wrapped loosely around it. I pull him back into the bathroom and remove it, putting a new one on the right way and kissing it. “Better now?”

He nods, reaching for Leo and handing him to me. I cradle Leo in my arms, rubbing his belly. “I’ll get Leo some lunch as well as us. You go pick a movie and set it by the TV.” The rest of the day goes smoothly, playing Guild Wars until it gets to dinner time. Phil helps me in the kitchen, myself chopping up ingredients and handing them to him to throw into the pan.

Leo comes in meowing at us, weaving between our legs and almost tripping me up. “Hang on, Leo; let me get the rest of our dinner ready then I’ll get some for you.” He rubs against my leg a little harder to say thanks and I get back to work, now chopping up the chicken and setting some aside to cook separately for Leo.

I finish up the last of the cooking as Phil sets the table, hearing him tell Leo to get off of it and go back to the kitchen. I start to pour the food into dishes when Phil comes through the door, holding Leo up to me. “He doesn’t get why he can’t eat dinner with us tonight.”

I look at Leo, then back to Phil. Leo usually does eat dinner with us, his own special spot at the table where he can lean up on his paws from the chair and eat. “Well, I don’t see why he can’t.”

“But it’s our date night!” Phil reminds me, “It’s supposed to be just the two of us.”

I sigh, looking down at Leo’s big eyes. “I know, but…” It’s not really fair to Leo to make him eat by himself. “He can eat dinner with us and then we’ll have our alone time together, ok?”

Phil sets Leo on the floor and he prances off, “Fine.” Phil pouts. I touch his face and give him a quick kiss, asking him to help me bring the food out to the table.

We get to eating, chatting lightly and Phil telling me about his plans to build a fort tomorrow and that I could join him in it as long as I knew the password (which is a kiss, he whispers to me, but it’s a secret). I hear the wind pick up outside and glance out the window to see that it’s raining, the drops of water hitting the pane. Leo gets done before us and jumps down, finally leaving us alone. Phil sticks his tongue out as he scoots his chair closer to me, making me laugh. He grabs up my hand and I scoot my plate away, looking at him in the dim light of the candles. “So, movie?” I ask, my thumb brushing over his skin.

Phil smirks and I feel his knee touching mine. “We could skip it.” He suggests and I agree, both of us standing up and taking our plates to the kitchen. I start running the water to wash them but Phil comes up behind me, shutting off the tap and wrapping an arm around my waist, his lips near my ear. “Worry about it later.”

I set the plates in the sink and dry my hands, turning around and resting my arms around his neck. I stare at him a moment before kissing him, my fingers curling into his hair and his tracing down my spine. I can’t get over the fact that he wanted to have a date night with me. Sure, it’s been the same as every other night, but it’s the thought that counts. He wanted to have a night especially for us and to make it special. I love him so much for thinking of this.

Phil pulls away and takes my hand, jogging down the hall and me giggling after him. We get to our room and shut the door, Phil practically yanking off my shirt then kissing me again. His hands are demanding but gentle, pulling me close to him by my waist and rocking into me. I break away from him for a moment, “Let’s lie down, silly. We’ve barely made it into the room.”

Phil grins before swooping down, his arm going behind my legs and picking me up bridal style. I giggle, wrapping my arms around his neck again and watching as he walks me over to the bed, throwing me down onto it with a bounce. I wriggle out of my jeans as he takes off his shirt, moving the covers so we can both crawl under. He climbs on top of me, legs between mine and arms on either side of me. He looks so gorgeous I think I may melt, my body heating at every point he touches.

He moves down, leaving a trail of kisses from my neck to my stomach, stopping at the growing bulge in my pants. His fingers just come to my waistband when we hear a scratching sound coming from the door, our heads turning. “It’s Leo.”

“I know.” He says, about to continue until we hear a faint cry through the door, making him stop and drop his head.

“What?”

“He wants to come in.”

“Well, let him in and see what he needs.” I tell him and he gets up, pulling the duvet up to my chest as he opens the door.

Leo immediately runs in, jumping onto the bed and settling down near my legs. Phil comes up to the bed, hands on hips. “Leo, no. Dan and I need alone time.”

Leo lets out a strain of meows then buries his face into the blanket, his tail almost resting on top of his head. “What’s wrong?”

Phil sighs, sitting down on the edge of the bed and petting Leo. “He said the storm scares him and he wants to stay with us.”

I look down at Leo, curled up in a defensive ball. He usually sleeps with us anyway, so it’s not really a big deal. “If he’s scared I suppose he’ll have to stay.”

“But-“ Phil gives me a look of desperation and I can’t help but sympathize. I’m in the mood, too, but we can’t kick Leo out just because we want to have sex.

I take Phil’s hand, squeezing it. “I’ll make it up to you in the morning.” I promise him. He gives me a weak smile before getting up, trading his jeans for pyjamas and getting into bed. I look down at Leo between our legs, resting soundly now as the rain has started to die down outside.

“We got Leo knowing the responsibility.” I whisper to Phil, “His comfort and safety comes before our play time.”

“I know.” He says, rubbing a finger against Leo’s cheek. “I love him and want him to be happy.”

I smile, rolling onto my side to face Phil and Leo, soon falling asleep holding Phil’s hand and feeling Leo’s rumbling purrs against my leg.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan comes across an abandoned cat in an alleyway and takes it back home in hopes of companionship. When he wakes up the next day to a man with cat-like ears and tail, his world is turned upside down. Though their relationship is more than both of them bargained for, they soon find they need each other more than anything else.

“How tall are giraffes?” Phil asks me as I’m trying to pickpocket a citizen of Skyrim.

I glance a moment then concentrate back on the game. “Um, I don’t know.” I say, “I’ll look it up later for you.”

He’s just as curious as ever, asking questions about anything and everything whenever they come to mind. I don’t mind him asking, it’s actually quite cute, but I just don’t have the answer to everything. I take him to the library every weekend or so and help him check out all kinds of books on animals and the world and even certain children’s learning books. He’s roughly the same age as me but has never gone to a proper human school, so I thought it’d help him to at least learn the basics.

“Do you think we could find a giraffe book tomorrow? I read my book on penguins already.” He comes and flops sideways onto my lap, arms and legs hanging over either side of me. He almost makes me bump my controller and mess me up, but my theft turns out successful and I sneak back off into the shadows before exiting the game. “I think it’s going to storm tomorrow; it’ll have to wait.”

“But Dan!” He grabs me around my waist and shakes me, giving me a big pout. “Giraffes, Dan!”

I sigh, “Alright, well I’m done with my game so I can look it up for you on the computer now.” I tell him to get off me and we head to the office, pulling the red chair up next to Phil in my regular computer chair.

Phil looks over the big computer screen, eyes wide. He knows better than to bother me when I’m working, so he’s rarely been in here. He’s used to me using my laptop for videos and such, but this is the first time he’s been so closed to my big computer.

“Right, let’s get this turned on and I’ll try to find an article for you.” I say, hitting the power button on the tower.

“Dan,” Phil grabs my sleeve, “can you show me how to do it?”

I look at him a moment then look back to the startup screen. “Um…” It’s nothing against Phil, but with his clumsiness I don’t want him playing around with my expensive computer. “We’ll see, ok?”

“Please!” He hops up and down in the chair, “If you showed me how to do it myself then I could look up stuff all the time and wouldn’t have to bug you about it.”

I look into his big blue eyes, pleading with me to teach him. How can I say no? “Alright, I’ll show you the basics, ok?”

“Yay!” His arms go into the air and I laugh, turning back to the computer.

“Alright, first off you turn it on just like I did by using this button here, ok?” I point to the power button and he nods, eyes serious but the look on his face is comical.

After I log into my own profile I make a new one for him that doesn’t need a password so he can get on it easily. I go over to his and show him how to get to the internet, pointing the mouse at the Google Chrome icon. He finds it funny that it’s called a ‘mouse’ but it doesn’t look like one at all.

The internet pops up and I move the keyboard towards him after clicking to type in the Google search bar. “Alright, do you remember how to spell ‘giraffe’?” I ask. He’s gotten a lot better in reading but he still struggles a bit when writing.

“Um, I think so.” He says, looking down at the keys.

“Try spelling it out with the buttons, then click on this bit here.” I point to the search button on the screen.

He bites his lip and starts pushing buttons one by one with his pointer finger, spelling out G-E-R-A-F-E. He clicks to search and is met with a few pictures of giraffes. “That was a good try, but you were a little off.” I tell him, pointing to where it says Showing results for giraffe and clicking on that instead. “It’s ok because if you’re only a little off it’ll show you what you meant so you can learn.”

“That helps.” He says, eyes now glued to the screen full of giraffe pictures. He sees one that has a height chart next to it and he shouts ‘there!’ so I let him move the mouse to click on it and it takes us to a sight saying that giraffes can get up to over five meter tall. “That’s so big!” he exclaims.

We spend a good half an hour looking up different things and I even show him how to get onto YouTube and look up videos, which leads us to another hour of kittens yawning and meowing. Phil calls Leo in and he settles down on my lap as Phil shows him all kinds of cat things. They get an extra laugh out of the ones where the owners really don’t understand what the cats are trying to say or when a cat falls off of something and they shout.

Leo chirps up at me once, then I look at Phil.

“He want to know if there are videos of birds, too.” He says, looking just as curious as Leo.

“Yeah, just type in ‘birds’.” I say and Phil types it in correctly, hitting the search and seeing lots of videos of people’s pet birds singing certain songs and stuff like that. Phil finds one that shows a flock of birds against a blue sky and clicks on it, making the video go full screen and watching as the birds fly in circles. I feel Leo move in my lap and he suddenly jumps up onto the desk. Before I can grab him he jumps paws first at the screen, landing on top of the keyboard.

“Leo, no!” I shout, going to grab him again but my outburst scares him, making him jump and scramble off the keyboard and pressing a bunch of buttons and bumping the mouse. He finally jumps from the desk to my chair then down to the floor, running out the door. I look back at the screen and my eyes go wide. There’s a big window for a porn site on top of the now shrunken video, having been one of the side ads of the page.

“I didn’t know there was mating stuff on the computer, too!” Phil says, moving the mouse to click on it.

“No, Phil! Those links are dangerous; they could have viruses!” I tell him, grabbing the mouse away from him and quickly closing the window, my face as red as my chair.

Phil looks at me worriedly. “What’s a virus?”

“It’s this thing that makes the computer sort of sick.” I explain, sitting back down in my chair with a flop.

Phil gasps, covering his mouth with a sleeved hand. “Will it get me?!”

“No, it’s only for computers.” I assure him, “I’ll have to run a scan on it and make sure everything’s ok.” I make a few click and let my virus protection do its job, setting it to shut down once it’s done. “I think we’ve had enough computer for today.”

“I’m sorry.” Phil hangs his head.

“It wasn’t your fault, Leo just got a bit too excited about the birds.” I tell him, scratching behind his ears and he immediately leans into my hand. “I think you did really well on there.”

“Do you think I could use the computer more often then?” He perks up.

“Yes, but if you let Leo in here you have to make sure he doesn’t jump on stuff again, ok?” I tell him, “That includes not telling him the clicker is called a ‘mouse’.”


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan comes across an abandoned cat in an alleyway and takes it back home in hopes of companionship. When he wakes up the next day to a man with cat-like ears and tail, his world is turned upside down. Though their relationship is more than both of them bargained for, they soon find they need each other more than anything else.

I rubs my tired eyes as I come in the door, shutting it behind me before leaning against it. These last few weeks have been exhausting; seeming endless late shifts and extra hours. I knew it’d be difficult when I signed up for more work, but it was the only way to get enough money before Christmas. This week’s paycheck was just enough and finally, with the rest of the money I’ve saved up, I was able to get Phil the perfect present tomorrow. I feel my lips hint at a smile before I kick off my shoes and begin the slow crawl up the stairs.

It’s not long before I hear the stomping of feet coming closer and the shouting of my name. Phil comes sliding around the corner and once he spots me I don’t have enough time to dodge his pounce, landing on me hard and making me groan. “Phil, please.” I know he’s just glad I’m home, but I’m sore all over and can barely stand. I wish he wouldn’t be so hyper sometimes.

“I missed you!” He says, still holding me while he jumps up and down, ears perked up and twitching. “I didn’t even get to see you this morning before you left for work.”

“I had an early shift then I had to stop by the store after.” I finally push him off of me, taking a deep breath as I head for the bedroom, tossing my coat off to the corner. I collapse on the bed and lay my arm over my eyes, a headache forming. I need to make myself eat before I go to sleep. I didn’t have the healthiest of lunches so I’ve been running on empty for the better half of the evening.

Phil climbs on top of me and I groan again, his weight on my lap too much. “No, Phil, not now.”

“I want to cuddle with you.” He pouts, leaning down and wrapping his arms around me. “It’s not fair. You’ve been gone too much lately. I need you here.” His tail whips back in forth in the air behind him, the tip of it flicking.

“I know, but I needed the extra work.” I push him off me yet again and struggle to sit up, my back protesting. I miss Phil, too, but I need some space. I just want to come home and relax my aching body and I can’t always do that with the way Phil is. Leo doesn’t help either. He’s been coming to lay with us more often since it’s been colder at night and every time he jumps up onto the bed he lands on me, waking me up.

“Hey, you said we’d make cookies before Christmas came.” Phil sits up, hands playing with a loose string on my jumper.

“I’m just going to buy some, ok? I don’t feel like making them.”

I scoot out from under him and move to grab my pyjamas but he jumps on me from behind, almost knocking me over. I catch myself on the wardrobe and look back at him, pulling on my jumper. “You promised! I wanted to make cookies!”

“Phil- Look, I’m sorry, but I’ll get you cookies, ok? We can make them some other time.” I shrug him off my jumper and change into my pyjama bottoms, watching as his excited face turns into a pout.

“It’s not the same!” Phil crosses his arms at me, “I don’t want to buy them, I want to make them.”

“Well I don’t feel like making them and I’m not helping you with it either.” The kitchen disaster that would follow would be too much to clean up and my patience bar with people for the day is more than filled, even when it comes to just trying to teach Phil things like baking. “Now, will you please let me relax for a little while? I’m tired.”

“Fine,” He says, defeated. “We can go watch a movie.”

“No, I’m going to grab some food then be on my laptop until bed.” I try to get to the door but Phil blocks my path, his arms going around my neck and weighing me down. I sigh and pull his arms off me as gently as possible, a genuine frown appearing on his face. “You can go play with Leo until you go to bed, too, ok?”

“No, I want to stay with you.” Phil pleads.

“Phil-“

“I haven’t seen you all day; I just want to spend time with you.”

My hand goes to my forehead, blood pulsing. “I know, but I need-“

“It’s not fair!” He stomps, “You haven’t been home enough and I need you! Leo needs you!”

“And I need you to leave me alone!” I burst, my head aching and legs threatening to give out again. I need some peace and quiet so this headache can go away and I need to lie down before I fall down.

Phil lets go of me, eyes wide. He stares for a moment, ears flat on his head. “Ok.” He slowly turns and shuffles off, quietly closing the door behind him.

I let out a breath but the adrenaline fueling my annoyance won’t go away. I didn’t mean to shout at him, but I really do need some alone time right now. I sit down on the bed, running my fingers through my hair. I just need to calm down before I go talk to him.

I can’t think of eating now, too mad to think of dealing with making something. I instead grab my laptop and browse through Tumblr, adding things to my queue before switching to YouTube. I’m only able to get through one video before I give up and close my laptop. I need to go apologize before he thinks he did something wrong.

I leave my room and look around the house for Phil, but it’s quiet. He’s not in the kitchen or lounge, he’s not even staked out in front of the fireplace. Where could he be? I start to head for the bathroom but hear an odd scratching noise. I follow it to find Leo, scratching at the front door. “Leo, what are you doing?”

Leo turns and trots over to me, pawing at my leg and meowing loudly. “Do you know where Phil is?” He goes back over to the door and scratches at it, mewling. I bite my lip, crouching down to look at Leo. “Are you sure?”

Leo meows again and I sigh. “Damn it, Phil.” I just wanted some peace and quiet; I didn’t mean for him to leave.

I run back to my room and grab my coat before meeting Leo back by the door. “Be a good boy until I get back, ok?” He cocks his head at me before I shut the door, hoping Phil hasn’t gone too far.

~

I can feel my tail shivering around me, my hoodie not much protection from the cold. What was I thinking leaving the house on my own without grabbing my coat first?

But… Dan told me to leave him alone, so… I left. I didn’t mean to make him angry with me; I’ve just missed him so much these past few weeks. When he finally gets home I just want to shower him with love and have fun with him; I can’t help myself.

I thought that’s how Dan felt, too, but he’s been different lately. He’s been irritable and short tempered with me, making just cuddling with him feel like a task. Has he… gotten tired of me or something?

No, Dan isn’t like that. He loves me. He says so all the time. He takes care of me and spends time with me. We’ve been together for so long now, I can’t imagine being with anyone else. It’s not like I could even if I tried; not with my ears and tail.

Dan’s different, though. He could find someone else to be with if he really wanted to. He could leave me, and… I’d be abandoned again.

I stop in front of a snow covered bench and sit down, covering my eyes with my freezing hands. The park is fortunately empty, the temperature deterring people from wanting to stay outside. I try breathing on my hands to warm them up, but it doesn’t do much.

Where would I go if Dan abandoned me? It’s not like I’m a cat anymore that can fend for themselves in side streets or get picked up by a new family. I’d be helpless. I can’t get a job, people would think I’m a freak and shun me. It’s useless. I can’t do anything without Dan, but even he’s…

“Phil!” My ears perk up at my name and I turn to see Dan running towards me. I stand up, watching him until he stops in front of me, panting. “W-what are you doing out here?”

“I-“ I shuffle me feet, “You told me to leave you alone.”

Dan breathes out a heavy sigh, “I didn’t mean leave the house! I just needed some time alone.” He shakes his head at me before turning away. He must still be mad at me.

“I’m sorry.” I mumble, hands fumbling together in my hoodie pocket.

Dan’s face softens. “No, I’m sorry. I’ve been really stressed lately but I should never have taken it out on you.” He reaches into my pocket and grabs my hand, letting him pull it out. “The reason why I’ve been so busy lately is because I wanted to get you a Christmas present.”

My eyes widen, tail twitching under my shirt. “But… I thought you said we didn’t have to do presents this year since I’m new to celebrating it.”

“I know, but I went ahead and got you one anyway.” He lets go of my hand and holds it up. “Remember when you gave me this?”

I look at his hand for a moment before I realize he means the white piece of string, carefully tied around his middle finger. “Yeah, it’s for the married thing, right?” Dan told me all about weddings and people getting married that day and it made me want to marry him really badly. Seeing as I didn’t have a ring to give him like you’re supposed to give people, I sacrificed my yoyo to give Dan what he now has wrapped around his finger.

“Well, when two people are married,” He says, reaching into his coat pocket, “they’re both supposed to wear a ring.” He pulls out a small, black box, holding it out to me. I stare at it, jaw slack as I realize what lies in wait inside.

“Phil,” I starts, “I love you so much. I don’t know if it was by accident or fate that I came across you in that alley way, scared and alone, but not a day has gone by that I’ve regretted it.” He bites his lip, looking down at the box. “I’ve never been good with words, but- I want you to know you mean everything to me. You’ve brightened up my life like I never thought it could; both you and Leo. I can’t imagine my life without you, so…”

He opens up the box, revealing a simple ring inside and I feel the air leave my lungs. I ran out of our home thinking Dan didn’t want me anymore; that I’d done something bad. Now Dan is standing in front of me with this symbol of love that he himself taught me. I can’t find the words to express to him just how much this means to me. “Dan…”

He pulls the ring out of the box and holds out his other hand, wanting me to give him mine. Trembling, I do, and he carefully slips the ring onto my finger. I look at it, looking odd on my hand but feeling right. He did all that extra work and went through all that stress just so he could get me this. “I don’t know what to say, I-“ My lip quivers and before I can control myself I quickly wrap my arms around his neck, squeezing tightly and he holds me back.

We stay like that for a while, just savoring each other’s warm embrace. I never want anyone else to hold me like this. No one will love me like Dan does and I feel so silly for doubting that, even for a second. “I love you, Dan.” I mumble into his shoulder.

“I love you, too, Phil.” He whispers before pulling back and I catch his lips in a kiss, long and soft. I can’t stop smiling and I’m acutely aware of the ring on my finger, playing with it with my thumb. Dan breaks away and tugs at my hand, “We should get back home.”

I nod and follow him, home being exactly where I want to be.

~

Our family is small, just the two of us and Leo. We’ve all been through a lot this past year; being abandoned by people who we thought loved us. We’ve been hurt, but because of those hard times we found each other. We grew with each other and learned to trust again; in others and in ourselves. We may be seen as broken or misfits, but when we spend time with each other none of that matters. Our family may be small, but it’s all we really need.


End file.
